The Blackwolf Reunion
by RAustin
Summary: What would B.B. and Terra be like as young adults? "The Blackwolf Intervention" is a necessary first story. READ IT FIRST! "Reunion" is set 7 years later, my projection of what our heroes would be like at the age of 22, when they are finally reunited.
1. ONE

The Blackwolf Reunion:

a sequel to 'The Blackwolf Intervention'

Author's notes:

First, if you haven't read "The Blackwolf Intervention" then this one will make no sense. The other is a necessary prequel to this one. So, go read it first, and if you liked it then come back and check out this one.

Are you back? Good. There are a few things I feel I need to tell you about this one. I don't know if this even qualifies as fan fiction, since the characters are my own projections of what the cartoon characters might be like seven years later, having gone through the events of "The Blackwolf Intervention," and are very different from the cartoon characters. Also, I include my own original character, who, towards the end, kind of takes over the story for a while. Mostly, it's about Logan (B.B.) and Terra getting to know each other again. I will warn you, there's very little action. It's mostly a lot of dialogue. I'm really not sure how interesting this will be to anyone but me, so I'd appreciate it if you'd read this and give me some feedback. Please review!!

Those of you familiar with the comics know that it is already established what B.B. is like as a young man. 'Gar' Logan has been in the comics for years. Well, I read his 4-part miniseries simply entitled "Beast Boy," and decided Gar was unsatisfying. I knew I could make a grown up B.B. who was far cooler than this guy. Thus, I created Logan, my version of B.B. at the age of 22. Disregard everything you know about Gar, because Logan is my own character. He is based primarily on the cartoon and my own projection of how he would have changed over the years, with only a few things taken from the comic. The look, for instance. Logan looks exactly like Gar from the comic, but that's about the end of the similarity. Gar was bitten by a venomous green monkey, or some bizarre thing, and Logan is just a mutant. Gar went by Changeling, Logan goes by Beast. But then again, taken from the comic, Titans Tower is in New York. For the cartoon it was moved to a nameless west coast city. I moved it back. A trivial detail, but it may confuse cartoon fans unfamiliar with the comic. Also, there is some talk of the world population's view of mutants and superheroes, and I found I was really describing something more like Marvel's world than DC's. Oh well, whatever. It's my story.

If it isn't already obvious, I should make it clear that this story DOES NOT take place in the canonical DC universe. The arrival of David and the events of "Blackwolf Intervention" altered history, and altered B.B. and Terra's lives forever. My story is set in an alternate reality, which is appropriate since David can travel between alternate realities.

I'm not sure what my fellow Titans fans will think about what I've done to our beloved characters. You may think this insults the cartoon characters, you may think it honors them. I don't know. Thus, PLEASE REVIEW!!

A final note: This is rated Mature for language and some (tasteful, I hope) love scenes.

OK, enough of me apologizing for my work. Here it is, make of it what you will. Enjoy.

Richard Austin

Oh, and by the way, PLEASE REVIEW: )

ONE

Logan casually cruised his motorcycle across campus. San Francisco State University had been his home for two years now, and he knew it's campus like the back of his hand. It was around noon, and he was meeting his good friend Mitch for lunch before their afternoon classes.

As he slowly tooled across campus, the distinctive growl of his Harley Davidson springer softtail caught people's attention, and many of them looked up to wave a brief hello as he passed. Logan was well known on campus, and he and his bike were a familiar sight. After a few minutes he reached a small campus café. Logan parked his bike in front and started to walk in, passing a girl from one of his classes walking out.

"Hey, Logan," she said politely as they passed.

"Hey, Trisha," he replied casually. As he reached the door, it opened to another pair of students, walking out.

"Hey, look, it's The Beast," the man said, more to the woman with him than to Logan. "How ya doing, man?" he asked.

"Doing well, thanks," Logan replied with a smile as they passed in the doorway. He didn't know the couple, but wasn't surprised to be recognized. He was a bit of a campus celebrity, and having green skin and hair made him instantly recognizable to everyone. Logan was a mutant, and until recently, a professional superhero. He had given up his life of crime fighting, temporarily, to get an education here at San Fran State. Still, he was well known as the campus' resident superhero.

x

Garfield "The Beast" Logan walked into the small café and quickly spotted his friend at a back table.

"Hello, Mitch. What's up?" he said as he reached the table.

"Not a lot, Beast Boy," Mitch replied with a smile.

Logan groaned loudly as he sat down. "Don't call me that. Please don't call me that. Not in public."

Mitch laughed. "I just think it's cute, is all."

"I was Beast Boy when I was 14 years old, all right?" Logan said with an only partly fake annoyance. "I was a boy at the time, so it fit. I'm a grown man now, for God's sake. Quit calling me 'Boy'."

"You're 22, right?" Mitch asked. "Guess that's grown up enough. 'Beast Boy' just has such a ring to it, though."

"No, it really doesn't," Logan replied seriously. "Living in New York I tried for two whole years to drop the 'Boy' from my name, but my friends wouldn't have it. Then I moved out here where nobody knew me, thinking I could start fresh with a new name, but that fucking Beast Boy moniker has somehow managed to stick with me."

"OK, OK," Mitch said apologetically. "I just think it's cute."

Just then, a pretty blonde girl walked up to their table. "Excuse me, aren't you The Beast?" she asked Logan.

Mitch laughed. "See, see? There you go, getting your wish."

Logan shot him a quick look, then turned to the girl. "Yes, I am. The name's Logan," he said as he extended his hand.

"Barbara," she replied as they shook hands. "Wow, so you're a superhero, huh? Like, a mutant? Do you have superpowers? Isn't that why you're green?"

Logan laughed and nodded, still a little embarrassed to get attention from a fan. Back home in New York, living and working with the Teen Titans, a team of professional superheroes, he had never really had to deal with the public. Since coming to school two years ago, he had been slowly learning how to deal with curious superhero fans. Fortunately, his buddy Mitch knew this embarrassed him, and was more than happy to jump in for him.

"Of course he has superpowers," Mitch told her. "He's the best shape-changer in the world. He can become any animal you can think of, and then some."

"Wow," she replied softly. "That's cool." Two of her friends, also attractive young women, walked up to join her beside Logan's table. "Hey, guys," she said to them, "This is The Beast. He's a superhero."

"Yeah, I know who he is," said the brunette girl. "Um … Logan, is it? You turn into different 'beasts,' right? Different animals?"

Logan just nodded, and Mitch added, "Any beast you can imagine."

"Any animal at all, huh? Ooh, can you do a pony?" asked the first girl, the blonde. "I love ponies."

"Fuck ponies," the brunette said. "I'd rather see a big-ass lion."

Logan laughed softly. "Ponies and lions are both kinda big for this crowded café. How about something smaller."

"How about a kitty?" said the blonde. There was a sudden blur of green motion around Logan's body, and he was instantly gone, replaced by a small, fluffy, green kitty cat. The girl jumped and let out a startled little cry, then laughed as he looked up at her from his seat and meowed. "That was cool!" she exclaimed.

"And you can do lions and bears and stuff, too?" asked the brunette.

Logan was about to turn human so he could reply, when Mitch stepped in. "And gorillas and elephants and monkeys and birds and fish and … anything you can think of."

"How about a badger?" came from the third girl, who had not yet spoken. The cat blurred for half a second, then there was a large green-furred badger sitting in Logan's chair. "Um, lemur?" she said, and the badger morphed into a small, ring-tailed critter somewhere between a squirrel and a monkey. "Cool. Ooh, bandicoot!" she said, and Logan became a small, furry, big-eared rodent. The girl thought for a second, then excitedly called out, "Oh, oh, pygmy marmoset!" and the rodent became a very small, fluffy-headed monkey thing. She started laughing, and as Logan morphed human again, she explained, "I didn't even know what a marmoset looks like, I'd just heard the name."

"Well, there ya go," Logan replied, laughing with her.

"They're not really green, are they?" asked the blonde, and her friend hit her in the arm like she had said something stupid.

Logan shook his head. "Brown and tan, sometimes black. You can always tell me from the other pygmy marmosets because, well, I'm the green one."

"Well," the blonde girl started. "Sorry for disturbing you and all. I guess we should let you get back to your lunch."

As they started to turn away, the third girl, who had called out all the animal forms, suddenly looked concerned. "I'm sorry," she said seriously. "I didn't mean to make you … you know, _perform_ for us like that. I didn't mean it like-"

"It's OK," Logan cut her off. "It's fine. People are curious about me, I understand that. I actually get it a lot. And using my power is no big deal, you saw how casually I can do it. So since my ability is easier to demonstrate than to explain … believe me, I'm used to it."

She seemed relieved, and turned to leave. The pretty blonde girl smiled warmly at him. Perhaps a bit flirtatiously, he thought. "Well, pleasure meeting you, Beast," she said as she extended her hand to him again. "Or should I call you Logan?"

"Logan is good," he replied as he shook her hand. He thought she held it just a bit longer than normal.

"Barbara, by the way," she added. "See you around, Logan." As the girls turned and walked away, Barbara turned back and flashed him one last quick, flirtatious smile.

"She digs you, man," Mitch said quietly.

"She digs the idea of a superhero, Mitch," Logan replied. "She doesn't even know me to be able to dig me."

"Either way, you could totally fuck her," Mitch said seriously. "Maybe the brunette, too."

Logan just smiled and shook his head.

"Maybe you could nail them both together," Mitch continued. "They looked like they might be-"

"Thanks, Mitch, but it's not my style."

"Really?" Mitch said incredulously. "What about Renee? What about Sharon?"

"What?" Logan said defensively. "I had classes with both of them. They met and got to know a student named Logan, not a superhero called Beast." He sat back and smiled confidently. "I believe I bagged both of them on my own merit."

"Don't kid yourself, Beast. Renee was a superhero groupie," Mitch replied seriously.

Logan looked annoyed for a second, then dismissed it. "Either way, she was good in bed, and that's the important part," he said with a big smile.

"Amen to that, brother," Mitch replied, holding up his hand for a high five. They clapped hands and laughed, then settled in to eating lunch and discussing the petty bullshit that fills a college student's life. Logan got his usual meat-free bean burger and fries, and Mitch got what he termed 'all the dead cow you could ever want,' the triple cheeseburger.

x

"So, tell me again why you don't eat meat?" Mitch started, his mouth full of dead cow.

Logan looked surprised at the question. "We've talked about this."

"Yeah, yeah, if you can become an animal you don't want to eat the animal," Mitch replied, as though bored with that answer. "You say it's kinda like cannibalism. But-"

Logan interjected, "It's a lot like cannibalism, yes."

"But let me ask you this, my man … When you become an animal, you take on all of its physical characteristics, presumably including its dietary needs. Am I right?"

"Yeah, if I stay in one form long enough to get hungry. Why?"

"So if you were a rat, you'd crave cheese, and if you were a cat, you'd crave rats. Right?"

Logan smiled. He'd heard this argument before, just not from Mitch.

Mitch continued, "So whatever species you are at the moment, you eat like that species eats."

"Right."

"So, logically, when you're human you would eat like a human eats. There's ample physical evidence that humans are omnivores. By your own rationale you _should_ be eating meat."

Logan nodded, preparing how to word his counter-argument. "I'm not exactly human, Mitch," Logan began seriously. "Not exactly. I'm a mutant. A mutation. A genetic 'accident' of nature. I can become physically identical to a human, but then, I can become physically identical to any other animal, too. I am my own unique species of animal."

"Wow, man, that's really deep," Mitch replied after a moment. "Don't see why that makes you vegetarian."

"Because _I_ decide what my species eats. My species, of which I am the only one, does not eat _itself_, and because it can physically become any of those other species, does not eat any of those other species. It would be … the best word for it is cannibalism. I eat the living beings that I cannot become, the plants."

"Ah, but …" Mitch replied, his mouth still full of triple cheeseburger. "But … there's cheese on that bean burger."

"Never said I don't eat cheese. I love cheese. There's a big difference between eating a piece of a dead cow's flesh, and eating cheese. I can't become cheese."

"Right, right," Mitch said as he swallowed the last of his triple cheeseburger. "So you acknowledge that being vegetarian is a choice you make, not a necessity of your unique species."

"Of course it's a choice I make. My other choice is cannibalism."

"So the only way to avoid this type of cannibalism …"

"Is to not eat any animals. Thus my only option is vegetarianism."

Mitch mulled this over with a mouthful of fries. After a long drink of his soda he finally proclaimed, "Fine, you've convinced me. But only for you. What about all the other flaky little veggie-eaters running around campus? Anything to say for them?"

Logan thought about it and laughed to himself. "No," was all he said.

"What do you mean, 'no'? You gotta have an opinion on all the other vegetarians in the world."

"It's a choice they make. It's arguable if it's a good choice or the right choice, but whatever. I can't fault them for it, I mean, I do it."

Mitch looked at his watch. "This has been deep and enlightening, my friend, but we need to wrap it up."

"Right," Logan replied, shoving the last of his bean burger in his mouth.

"Hey, Logan," Mitch said, unusually serious and sincere. "Do you really think of yourself as 'not human'?"

Logan gave a big smile and patted his friend on the shoulder. "No worries, my friend. I just think that's a conversation for another time. That's a conversation for when we're stoned."

Mitch laughed loudly. "Now that's a plan. How about tonight, your place?"

"Shouldn't tonight. Got a test tomorrow. Tomorrow night?"

"Sounds good."

x

As they got up to leave the table, Logan quickly scanned the room. "Gimme a sec," he muttered to Mitch, then headed off in the direction of that pretty blonde girl, Barbara, and her friends. They saw him approach and started to say something, but Logan held up a finger to silence them.

"Before I leave," he started, "I just wanted to say …" He paused a second, then morphed into a bright green Shetland pony. Barbara's face lit up and she let out a surprised, joyous squeal.

"Oh, how cute!" she exclaimed. Logan whinnied softly and held out a hoof to Barbara. She 'shook hands' with the pony, still giggling like a child, then Logan morphed human again and turned to the pretty brunette girl.

"And to you, I wanted to add …" and he morphed into his best lion. The great green beast barely fit in the space between tables. The girl said nothing, but her face was suitably impressed. Logan gave a small roar, waved a massive clawed paw in her direction, then returned to his human self, a big smile on his face. "That's all I had to say. Have a good day, ladies."

As he turned and walked toward the door, he heard the brunette girl talking. "Now that was fucking cool. That's why he's a superhero. Criminals know you don't fuck with a lion. He'll rip your fucking heart out."

Logan laughed to himself as he caught up with Mitch at the door.

"Can't resist showing off to the pretty girls, can you?"

Logan smiled. "Like you said, I just might nail them both."

x

As they walked out of the café, Logan said a final 'bye' to his friend and walked back to his bike. It was hard to miss. Besides being one of the few Harleys on campus, it also had a custom paint job, dark green tiger stripes across the black gas tank. This matched his 'Beast' outfit, which was black with green tiger stripes at the ribs, biceps and thighs. The warm spring day was too hot for his cycle jacket, which was also patterned after his superhero attire, black with dark green stripes.

Logan did this because everyone already knows he's a superhero, so he figured he might as well play into it a little. As he unlocked his helmet, which was also black with green tiger stripes across the temples, he heard, "Hey, look, it's The Beast," from a group of people down the sidewalk. He looked up and waved as he pulled on the helmet and started the bike.

x

The rest of Logan's day was pretty uneventful. Biology class, then math, then back to his apartment to do his homework. That evening, after an hour of struggling to wrap his brain around calculus equations, he sat back to rest, letting his mind wander. After a minute his eyes settled on an old, familiar picture on the wall. Terra. He still missed Terra. They had been 15 the last time they saw each other, but even after seven years she was still his first and only true love. As he sat and gazed at the picture of a beautiful teenager with long blonde hair and big, bright blue eyes, his mind went back to the days when he had known her.

He had been Beast Boy then, exclusively. His only friends were fellow superheroes, and Terra herself was also a mutant superhero. None of them had 'real' names back then, and he was known only as Beast Boy, or sometimes B.B. His best friends were his Teen Titans teammates, fellow teenaged superheroes Cyborg, Robin, Starfire, and Raven. And, of course, Terra.

But that was seven years ago, and the Titans are all grown up now. They call each other Victor, Dick, and Kory now, more often than not. Raven is, in fact, her real name. He hadn't been home to see Vic, Dick, Kory and Raven in almost a year now, but at least he knew he could. Terra was completely lost to him.

Boy, was that a long story. She lived in another dimension now, and that took some explaining. When she was 15 and met the Titans, she also met the wickedly evil supervillain Slade, who lied to her, manipulated her, and convinced her to become his apprentice. She briefly turned to the dark side, believing the Titans to be her enemies, and fought them at Slade's side. In the end she realized what she had become and ended up killing Slade, nearly dying in the process. Beast Boy had saved her, but then she had to deal with the Titans, who couldn't trust her and didn't know what to do with her.

They sought help from a friend of theirs, an inter-dimensional, intergalactic traveler named David Blackwolf. They used a beacon he had left with them to summon him to Titans Tower, and they asked if he knew of anywhere that Terra might fit in, a place where she would be able to recover from the psychological damage Slade had inflicted, where she could re-learn how to be a hero. Fortunately, David knew the perfect place, a school in another dimension, on an alternate Earth. A school specifically for teenaged mutant superheroes. It seemed almost too perfect, and David took her away to a place called the Xavier Institute, where she has been living all this time.

Beast Boy had insisted on going with them to check out these so-called "X-Men" and decide for himself if Terra would be well cared for. Once they had met his approval, he said goodbye to Terra and returned home to the Titans. That was, to this day, the saddest day of his life.

x

Logan allowed himself a weak smile. Besides being the saddest day of his life, it was also his proudest moment. He had saved her. Against all the odds, against Slade, against his teammates, against Terra herself, he had fought for her and he had saved the woman he loved. If he hadn't stayed with her at Slade's lair, she'd be dead now. If he hadn't fought at length with his fellow Titans, she'd be in prison right now. But he _did _stay with her, he _did_ fight for her, and now she was alive and well, and, hopefully, living a good life with these "X-Men."

From that day forward, he knew what he was capable of. He lost much of his childhood insecurity, and gained a new confidence in his own ability to do what had to be done. Knowing Terra, and saving her, had changed him in ways he knew he didn't fully understand. In some ways, he felt like he became a man that day.

As he stared into the blue eyes of Terra's picture, he could only hope that her life in this other dimension was treating her well. He hoped she got the help she needed. He hoped she was a hero again. Just as a tear was almost about to form, Logan shook himself out of it. Sitting, staring, pining away for his lost love, was something he did fairly regularly, and he was used to its effects. He pushed away the sadness and forced his mind back into calculus mode.


	2. TWO: Thursday afternoon

TWO

(Thursday afternoon)

Sitting alone at a park bench, Logan was engrossed in his homework when a voice behind him said, "Hey, Beast Boy. Mind if I join you?" Logan didn't recognize the voice, and wondered who might be calling him that stupid name now. He turned to see a young man of about 25, standing behind him in black jeans and an un-tucked black dress shirt. He had unruly black hair and bright blue eyes. He looked like any other student, and at first Logan didn't recognize him.

"You look good, B.B." he said casually. "You've grown up quite nicely." When it finally clicked, Logan's jaw literally dropped. This was David Blackwolf, the inter-dimensional traveler he had befriended all those years ago. Logan sat in stunned silence. Seven years ago, David had taken Terra to her new home then gone his own way, and that was the last Logan had seen of either of them.

David raised an eyebrow and looked at him expectantly. "B.B., you OK?" he asked.

"David?" Logan finally got out, rising to his feet. "What the hell, man? It's been like … seven years," he exclaimed. "How are you? Good to see you." Logan stood and took a step toward David, extending a hand to shake with him. "What brings you here?"

"I came to see you, of course," David replied as they shook hands. "Mind if I join you?"

"Of course not. Here, let me make some room," Logan said, gathering up his homework. "Have a seat."

They both sat down at the bench and looked at each other for a moment, then David spoke. "It's really good to see you, Beast Boy. You've grown up a lot."

Logan laughed. "I have grown up. I'm The Beast now. Actually, call me Logan."

"Logan? Cool. Cyborg asked me to call him Vic now, too. You guys are all grown up, using your real names now. It's hard to get used to. Starfire goes by Kory, it's just weird."

"So you've seen the old gang, then?"

"Just left them."

"And you came here … looking for me?" Logan asked.

David just nodded.

"Why?" Logan asked. "What can I do for you?"

David cracked a big smile. "It's not what you can do for me, kid. Let me start from the top. You know the summoning beacon I left with the Titans years ago? You used it when you needed help with Terra."

"Right. Did the guys use it again?"

"No. I leave those beacons with friends I make in my travels around the universe, and a long time ago I left one with the X-Men. You remember them?"

"Of course," Logan replied. "That's where Terra lives. You left her a beacon?"

"No, I left the X-Men a beacon, in case they needed me. Professor Xavier has been holding on to it all this time. Well, Terra recently found it and used it."

Logan looked at him expectantly. "So … what? You went to see Terra, and …"

"She wants to see you, B.B. She misses you."

Logan suddenly looked around him and behind David. "So … is she here?" he asked excitedly.

David smiled at Logan's excitement. "No, B.B., um, I mean, Logan. I had to find you first."

Logan threw his arms out wide. "Here I am! Go get her." David started to say something, then Logan continued. "Better yet, take me to her. Let's go," he said as he started to gather his books.

"Easy, big guy," David said, putting a hand on Logan's forearm to stop him. "She wants to come see you. So I went to Titans Tower looking for you, and they directed me out here. Now I'm going to go get her and bring her out here for a bit. So …" he stopped and gave Logan a fake serious look in the eye, "if you want to see her, that is …"

"C'mon, man!" Logan exclaimed. "Of course I want to see her. I've wanted to see her for like seven years! Go get her!"

"When's good for you?" David replied casually.

Logan looked at his watch. "I'm not doing anything now."

"No, seriously, Logan …" David started.

"Seriously, David. Aren't you some kind of time traveler? I'll bet you could have her here with us inside ten seconds."

This time David looked at his watch. "It's one o'clock on a Thursday. Don't you have class this afternoon?"

"Terra is more important," he replied seriously. "I've ditched class for less. A lot less."

"I figured you guys would want a few days together. How about this weekend? We could show up Friday night?"

"Fine, that's tomorrow night. We'd have until Tuesday."

"Tomorrow night, then? Good. What time? Where?"

Logan thought for a second. "God, I don't know. What would she want to do?"

"See you. Talk to you," David said. "I don't know, Logan. You're a college student, you must have a favorite hang-out, a bar or pool hall or something."

"Pool hall?"

David shrugged. "Restaurant? Surely you've taken a girl out around here before."

"Yeah, but … this is Terra." After a second, a thought occurred to him. "Does she still go by Terra?"

David nodded. "You know, her real name-"

"Is Tara, anyway. That's right. Never mind. How about dinner at The Jumbo Shrimp downtown. Excellent seafood." Logan looked down as another thought occurred to him. "Does she like seafood? I can't remember."

"I'm sure it'll be fine, Logan." David reached across the bench and patted Logan's arm. "Relax, kid. You're getting all worked up about this."

"Of course I'm all worked up about this!" he exclaimed. "I haven't seen the love of my life in seven years and you're telling me she'll be here tomorrow night? Of course I'm worked up."

David didn't reply and they sat in silence for a long moment, looking at each other. "I have a serious question," David finally said.

"What's that?"

"If seeing Terra is such a big deal to you … why didn't you … I mean … you've had my summoning beacon this whole time."

Logan looked down seriously. "Well, one, _Raven_ has your summoning beacon. She refused to let me use it, and Robin backed her up. Eventually, I came to agree with them that she was better off without me, better off without any reminders of her past. Better off making a fresh start. After about six months of pestering them about it, I finally decided they were right."

"Immediately afterward, they probably were right," David agreed. "But it's been seven years…"

"So about five years later, I tried again to get that beacon from them. Maybe it was like four years later … anyway, they said they wouldn't stop me, but first I got a long lecture on letting the past lie, on reopening old wounds, risking upsetting whatever good has come out of her time away. Ultimately, I decided they were right, again."

"It probably is best that you let her come to you," David replied softly, then his face brightened and he added, "But, hey, she has. So, dinner tomorrow night at The Jumbo Shrimp downtown. What time?"

"Seven o'clock sound good? You know the place?"

"I'll find it."

"Will you be, um …" Logan started. "I mean, you're welcome to, ya know, join us ... if you're …"

David laughed. "You're big kids, now. You don't need a chaperone. No, I figure you'll want some time alone together."

"Excellent. I mean, no offence, but …"

"Oh, none taken. I've got plans, anyway. Well, I hope."

"Really?" Logan replied. "What are you gonna be doing?"

David looked slightly embarrassed. He muttered, more to himself, "Raven, if all goes well."

Logan didn't get it. "What are you and Raven doing?" he asked. "Something magic, probably."

David was trying not to laugh at his own joke. "No, you asked what I'd be 'doing.' I said Raven."

It finally clicked in Logan's head, and he burst out laughing. "You're shitting me!" he exclaimed. "C'mon, Dave, you've got to be shitting me! You and Raven?"

"Well, not yet, but …" David replied with a big smile.

"C'mon, Dave …" Logan started, not sure what to say. "What makes you think … I mean, you and Raven?"

"What?" David started defensively, still grinning like a madman. "We've got a lot of common interests, we're about the same age now, she's seriously hot …"

"OK, I'll grant you she's a serious babe," Logan replied. "What do you mean, you're the same age now?"

"Well, I, you may recall, am immortal," David said simply.

Logan snapped his fingers as the memory came to him. "That's right, you're like 500 years old."

"Closer to seven now. My aging has been strange, but anyway, I've been 25 years old, more or less, for a few centuries now. When I first met Raven the connection was there, the attraction, the chemistry, were definitely there, but I was 25 and she was 16, and it just wasn't gonna happen. She was just too young. Well, it's been eight years since that first meeting. I'm still 25, and she's 24 now."

"And you think the chemistry from eight years ago is still there?"

David nodded. "She gave me 'the look' when I was at the Tower earlier. You know 'the look,' you must get it all the time, handsome guy like you."

Logan just shook his head and smiled. "I don't know what to say, man. I can't picture Raven hooking up with anybody, but … I guess an immortal alien space-time traveler is more her 'type' than anyone else I can think of."

"Thank you, that means a lot," David replied, laughing again. "Anyway …"

"Anyway, back to me," Logan said. "Tomorrow night, seven o'clock, The Jumbo Shrimp."

"I will drop her off at seven sharp, and you kids are on your own from there."

"And you're … going back to New York?"

David nodded. "Teleportation is a wonderful thing."

"And I'll have Terra all weekend?"

David just nodded again.

"Wow," Logan muttered as he ran his hands through his hair. "The reality of this is starting to sink in. I'm going to see Terra again. Wow. What am I going to say to her?"

"I'm sure you'll think of something."

"Did she …" Logan started seriously. "Is she … I mean … We took her to this school because she needed help. Did she … I mean, is she OK? Did she get the help she needed?"

"Logan, she's a hero," David said seriously. "She's been a hero for some years now. You should know that she left Slade and never looked back. She's done really well for herself, and is now a valuable member of a world-class team of superheroes."

Logan was visibly relieved, but didn't reply. David continued, "She definitely got what she needed there. She's doing really well. And, she'll be pleased to see that you're doing so well for yourself."

"Heh. I'm just a college student."

"So is she, there at the Institute."

Logan nodded, then looked confused. "I thought the place was a high school?"

"Not exclusively," David replied. "These kids, even the ones not cut out to be superheroes, are still mutants. You can't just kick them out when they turn 18. Well, the Professor doesn't, anyway. He had the X Institute accredited as a junior college. Terra is getting her degree in … something, I forget what, while continuing to fight crime and oppress evil. What about you, 'Beast'? How are your crime-fighting days coming along?"

Logan shrugged. "San Fran State doesn't have much need of superheroes. All the villains are on the other coast, so that's where all the heroes hang out."

"So you're strictly a student, then?" David pressed, not believing. "No hero-stuff going on of any kind?"

"OK, so I've broken up a few fights," Logan finally admitted. "I still make aerial patrols at night, and have broken up a few muggings. That kind of thing."

"So is The Beast making a name for himself as San Fran's greatest hero?"

"Heh. One of San Francisco's only heroes."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Sadly, most of the criminals I'm running into out here are just used to cops, not superheroes. They freak out when a green-skinned shape-changing superhero comes after them. And Northern California has precious few supervillains, which is actually a good thing, since I'm here to study, not go chasing after them."

"Right, right. So, you're just out of touch with the superhero community at large, aren't you?"

Logan nodded. "Pretty much. I know two heroes that call all of California home, because they've got super-speed and can cover it. One is the son of The Flash, and got all his speed. Calls himself Impulse. Good kid."

"And the other?"

"Hot blonde chick, amnesiac, suspected Kryptonian, Supergirl wannabe. This is a grown woman that calls herself 'Power Girl.' She's a trip. Then there's Flamebird, another hot blonde, who works out of L.A. and came up here once. She's pretty cool."

"It's good that you have friends to play with, B.B." David said with a mischievous smile. "I was worried about you, all alone out here."

Logan just waved his hand dismissively at David, and they sat in silence for a moment.

"What's your major, anyway?" David asked after a few seconds.

"Zoology. Speaking of which …" he paused to glance at his watch, "I've got a Micro class to get to."

David laughed softly. "Zoology. The study of all the beasts of the Earth. That suits you."

"I thought so," he replied as he puts his books into his backpack and got to his feet. "Tomorrow night, then?" he said as he shook David's hand.

"I'll drop her off and you'll have dinner for two. Sound good?"

"Seven o'clock."

"Right, I guess I'm off," David said as he reached into his back pocket, producing what looked like a black pen. It quickly enlarged in his hand into a three foot cane with a green crystal in the head.

"Hey, I remember that," Logan exclaimed upon seeing the cane. "You're gonna teleport out of here, in the middle of campus?"

David planted the foot of the cane in the ground in front of him, and it enlarged further, into a staff that stood to his shoulders. The crystal in the staff head began to glow with a brilliant green light.

David cheerfully replied, "Why not?" as the light exploded into a glistening green sphere of energy around him. A low hum filled the air, and small white sparks danced across the surface of the sphere. David gave a last nod of his head to Logan, then the sphere collapsed violently into its center, what had been the glowing crystal head of his staff. There was a last, brilliant spark of light, and then nothing. David was simply gone.

"Guess that's what a wormhole looks like," Logan muttered to himself, then turned and headed off to class.


	3. THREE: Friday night dinner date

THREE

(Friday night dinner date)

Logan sat at a small table at The Jumbo Shrimp and waited. He checked his watch again. 6:56. Soon, very soon. He nervously ran his fingers through his thick, dark green hair. He'd thought about getting it cut, but a few of the girls in class had reassured him that it looked good a little bit long. They said it looked rugged. Now he was afraid it just looked shaggy.

He wasn't entirely confident about his outfit, either. He'd gone with the all black look, a dress shirt with his favorite forest green tie. His black cycle jacket, with the dark green 'Beast' stripes on the biceps, hung on the back of his chair. He started to put it on again, then thought better of it.

"OK, stop it," he told himself. "Just … stop it. Relax." He finished his scotch and motioned to the bartender for another. This next one would make three, and he knew he'd better stop that, too. It would take a lot more than that to get him drunk, but he knew he didn't need a buzz going when he met Terra for the first time in seven years.

"Oh, my God," he muttered, running both hands through his hair. "I'm seeing Terra again for the first time in seven years. Oh, my God." He checked his watch again. 6:58. "Jeez …"

x

As he was occupying his mind with the breadsticks in front of him, he heard, "B.B.?" from across the room. He looked up, and there she was. Terra. She was every bit as beautiful as he remembered.

"Oh, my God!" she exclaimed. "B.B.!" As she hurried over to his table and set down a large duffle bag, Logan stood up and slowly looked her over from head to toe. Maybe 5'9" in her heels. Long blonde hair pulled back with a clip on one side. Stunning bright blue eyes. Lightweight black jacket over a pale blue spaghetti-strap top. Denim mini-skirt. Long, sexy legs. Black, backless, low-heeled strap sandals. French manicure and pedicure. Thin silver necklace, with a matching bracelet, anklet, and toe ring. Holding a small black purse. Devastatingly beautiful. She very obviously looked him up and down as well, and apparently liked what she saw. "B.B.!" she exclaimed again as she threw herself into his arms.

"Terra …" he whispered as he held her tightly. They just held each other for several seconds, Logan willing himself not to shed a tear. As they pulled back to face each other, Terra already had tears in her eyes. Logan had practiced several versions of what he might say to her, but at the moment none of them were coming to mind. "Here, have a seat," he finally got out. They sat across from each other at the small table and just looked at each other for several seconds.

"It's good to see you, Terra. You look … great," Logan said after a moment.

Terra reached across the table and took his hand. "You too, B.B." She gestured vaguely at him with the other hand, saying, "Look at you! You're all grown up. My God, you look great!"

"You haven't changed a bit," Logan said softly, staring into her eyes.

"Really?" She sounded disappointed. "No, but seriously, look at you! If you weren't bright green I might not recognize you. You've grown up _a lot_."

"You were stunningly beautiful at fifteen, and you're still … stunningly beautiful," he said, still holding her hand. "That's what I mean by 'you haven't changed'."

"That's sweet. No, but look at you!" she exclaimed again. "You fixed your teeth, you … you grew into your ears, you … got decently tall, you …"

Logan looked away briefly, an embarrassed grin on his face. "Yeah, I was kinda snaggle-toothed when I was younger. Braces and a few extractions fixed that. The rest is just Mother Nature."

She reached across and patted him firmly on the shoulder. "And you're _built_, too! You've been working out."

Logan shot her the embarrassed smile again. "Actually, yes. Martial arts training with Robin, that I've continued since I moved out here. Rob did whip me into pretty good shape. I needed it."

"How is Robin these days?"

"Goes by Nightwing now. Still a bad-ass."

"Nightwing?" she asked, surprised. "What's with that?"

Logan shrugged. "Robin was 'the boy wonder.' He grew up, adopted an adult persona."

Terra thought about this for a second. "I don't know, B.B. Seems like 'Robin' is a perfectly reasonable grown-up name."

"Which reminds me, Terra …" he started.

"Yes?"

"I'm not sure how to put this. 'Beast Boy' was definitely not a reasonable grown-up name. I'm The Beast now, and actually, all my friends call me Logan."

Terra looked vaguely puzzled. "Why?"

Logan laughed. "Because it's my name."

"No, I mean, I like 'The Beast,' but 'Logan'?" Logan just nodded, then Terra's eyes lit up as a memory came to her. "Our last day together, when I arrived at the Institute … you told me your name … was … Garfield Logan! That's right!"

"And you're Tara Markov. See, I remember these things. So, your friends call you Terra?"

She nodded. "They do. And your friends … call you Logan now? Seriously?"

Logan laughed and squeezed her hand, then looked down and realized they hadn't let go of each other the whole time. It felt good. "Is that a problem?" he asked with a smile.

"I guess not. It's just … you're my B.B.!" she exclaimed. "You'll always be my B.B. Even when you're six feet tall and built like a ball player, you're still my little B.B."

"I'm 5'10", actually, and …" he paused and just looked her in the eye for a second. "And yes, I will always be your B.B."

Terra gave a small, soft squeal of pleasure and a big smile. It was the same little noise she made years ago when something made her happy, and it just made Logan's heart melt.

"Of course you're my B.B." she said, squeezing his hand again. "So, you're not going to make me start calling you Logan? Because I don't think I could get used to that."

Logan just rolled his eyes and looked away, still smiling at her.

"OK, 'Logan.' I'll try it out," she said. "See how I like it." She pointed a finger at him with the other hand. "You're still my B.B., though."

Just then, a waitress came to the table. "Hey, Logan, sorry this is taking so long," she said as she set his scotch on the rocks in front of him. "The bar's pretty backed up right now."

"Don't worry about it, Becca," he replied. He started to asked Terra if she wanted a drink, but the waitress beat him to it.

Terra turned back to Logan. "I don't know, what's good here?" she asked.

He shrugged. "What do you like? Last time I saw you, we were too young to drink." After a second, he added, "They do killer margaritas here. You should try the purple one."

"Purple margarita," Terra repeated to the waitress.

"No problem. And do you guys know what you want to eat yet?"

"I haven't even opened the menu," Terra replied.

"Well, take your time, guys. The bar is hopping but the restaurant is actually pretty quiet. You're welcome to sit here as long as you like."

As the waitress started to leave, she turned to Logan, gestured with her eyes toward Terra, gave him an impressed look, barely whispered the words, "Hot! Good job!" then turned and walked away.

They both laughed, then turned back to each other. Logan glanced down at their hands. They hadn't let go of each other since she sat down, and it felt really good.

"That's Becca, we had Trig together," he said.

Terra just nodded. "So, you drink scotch now?" she commented. "How very manly of you. Most college students are all about the cheap beer."

Logan made an ugly face. "Can't stand cheap beer. It's a question of quality over quantity. I figure, if you can't drink something good, then why bother drinking?"

"In general, I agree," she replied, "although I have gotten pretty plastered on cheap beer before."

"Oh, so have I. I enjoyed the getting drunk with my friends part, but not the drinking crap beer part, you know what I mean?"

"Exactly."

"So … wild parties at Xavier's Institute, or do you go into town? The good Professor probably doesn't allow any parties at his school, does he?"

"Actually, he encourages them," she replied. "Says we're safer at the mansion than out in the city. He even condones the heavy drinking _if_… if you're over 21, which many of us are now. We go into the city sometimes, too."

"Cool," he replied, and the conversation lagged for a moment. They just sat, holding hands, looking at each other. Logan didn't care what they talked about, just as long as they were together. After several seconds, he snapped out of the blissful little trance he was in.

"Ya hungry?" he asked casually.

"Huh?" she replied as she snapped out of her little trance as well.

"Food," he said simply.

"Oh, yeah, right," she replied as she finally let go of his hand and picked up the menu. "What's good here?" she asked.

"Everything. It's called The Jumbo Shrimp for a reason. And remember, you're in San Francisco now, baby. You ain't had real seafood 'till you've had ours."

"I dunno," she replied absently as she studied the menu. "I live pretty close to Maine."

"I hear they do good lobster. You should try our lobster, I bet it's better."

She smiled at him, then went back to the menu. "Actually," he continued, "it's not a lobster, it's a Pacific crayfish. Functionally identical species to the lobster, except that technically, lobsters are only found in the Atlantic." He paused and just watched her for a second. "I know these things," he said proudly. "I study animals. Anyway, by all means, try the Pacific crayfish, which everyone, including the locals, all call lobster."

"Yeah, but lobster's expensive," she replied.

"Are you kidding? This is a momentous occasion! I'm celebrating seeing you again, and I think we should have a fancy dinner together. By all means, get the lobster."

Terra set down her menu and took his hand again. "I'm celebrating, too," she said happily, then leaned in and said conspiratorially, "But you know what? I don't really like lobster."

"What are you having, then?" he asked as they relaxed back into their seats, still holding hands.

"Probably the shrimp. What are you-" Terra froze, staring at him.

"What's wrong?" he asked, suddenly concerned.

"We're at a seafood restaurant. You're a … I mean, are you still? You're a vegetarian, aren't you?"

Logan gave a relieved laugh. He'd been afraid something was wrong. "Yes, I'm still a vegetarian. They do awesome pasta dishes here. I'm fine, don't worry about it."

Terra also gave a relieved laugh, then looked up as the waitress came back with her drink.

"Are you guys ready to order?" she asked. Terra got some variety of shrimp and Logan got his favorite awesome pasta dish, then the waitress quietly slipped away again.

Terra picked up her impressively sized purple margarita, prompting Logan to pick up his scotch. "A toast?" she said.

Logan pretended to think for a moment. He'd actually decided some time earlier what he was going to say to toast her arrival. "To old friends … and to new friendships." He liked that one, it was short, simple, and elegant.

"I like that," she said as they touched glasses and drank. "My old friend B.B. and my new friend Logan. This is so weird."

He laughed. "I guess it is. I get the feeling, though, that I've changed more than you have. You've just grown up a bit. I mean, hell, you're not even any taller."

She gave a small, resentful laugh. "I am, too, taller than when I was fifteen!" she replied.

"God, Terra," he said more seriously. "We were fifteen last time we saw each other. I feel like I don't know anything about you anymore. I mean …" he paused and cracked a big grin, "So how ya been the last seven years?"

She laughed, then got quiet again. "Good. I've been really good," she said softly. "B.B., there's something I've been wanting to tell you." She reached out and took his hand again. "Something I've been wanting to tell you for about … six years now. I guess I should get it out of the way now."

"What's wrong, Terra?" he asked, concerned.

"No, nothing's wrong, everything's wonderful, that's what I'm trying to tell you." She was suddenly becoming rather emotional, and fought back a tear. "When you took me to the Institute, it was because I needed help. I feel like I need to tell you that … I got it. I got all the help I needed and then some, and …" she paused as the tears began to roll down her cheeks. "And I've had a good life, B.B." she whispered. "I've had a really good life. I have a good home and good friends … and it's all because of you."

She wiped at her face, then took his hands in both of hers. "You saved my life, and you got me a new one. I was able to start over because of you, because of everything you did for me. You said when you left that you wanted me to have a good life and be happy, and _I have_, B.B., I really have. And my life, everything I have, everything I am today, is all because of you. And I don't even know how to possibly say thank you for all that, except …" she paused and looked him in the eye, tears flowing freely down her face. "Thank you, B.B. Thank you for everything."

Logan suddenly realized there were tears on his face as well. That was all he had needed to know. Now that he had heard that, he didn't know what to say. They stared into each other's eyes for several long seconds in silence. Finally, Logan just shrugged casually.

"You're welcome?" he muttered.

Terra burst out laughing, finally let go of his hands, and reached for the napkin to dry her face. "I just thought you'd want to know," she said, smiling through her tears. After a moment, she added, "See? I didn't wear any eyeliner tonight because I knew I was going to make myself cry. Didn't want to make a mess."

"Anyway …" Logan started after a second, "for sending you to live with X people, you need to thank Raven and David. All I did was harass them until they thought of something good."

"All you did …?" she replied sarcastically. "B.B., you saved my life, first off. I'd be dead if you hadn't saved me. Which, OK, you're a superhero, that's your thing. But still … you saved me from spending the rest of my life wearing an inhibitor collar in a federal prison. That night, when it all happened, Robin told me what you did. He told me you argued with Raven, a lot, broke her down, got her to admit there was more than one option. You fought for me, B.B. You fought with your best friends to try to help me."

Logan just shrugged, which made Terra laugh. "And you're so unbelievably modest about the whole thing, too."

"I just did what I thought was right, Terra. That's all."

"I know. That's what makes you so special." They held hands again and just smiled at each other for a bit.

x

Their food arrived, and they continued a casual conversation through the meal.

"So David told me you were a college student, and I asked if he knew your major."

"Zoology," Logan replied.

"Right. So is that … what are you gonna use that for?"

Logan laughed, choking on his pasta, and shot her a surprised look. "Are you kidding?"

"OK, I mean …" she started, laughing as well. "You studying animals seems pretty obvious, but I mean, are you gonna go into research, or …?"

He shook his head. "This education isn't so I can get a job, Terra. It's so I can be better at what I already do. Remember, I am only on temporary hiatus from the superhero game. It's what I was born to do, and I'll be back to it soon."

"Why the break, then? Why go to school? It's not like you need a degree to be a superhero."

"Well, one, I think getting an education makes you a better, more well-rounded person. You live at a school, Terra, you should get that."

She nodded. "And two?"

"I think it'll make me a better superhero."

"How?"

"You're gimmick is earth and stone, right? My gimmick is animals. I want to learn every potentially useful form this planet has to offer, and I want to know all there is to know about each of them so I can use them to their fullest effect."

"Makes sense. So, how much longer have you got?"

"Two years. Three if I decide to double in xeno-biology."

"Xeno?" she mumbled with her mouth full.

"Alien lifeforms. You don't really think about it, but thanks to the Justice League, mainly, the Earth has made contact with a fair number of alien worlds."

"I guess so. So after two or three years … then what? Back to the Teen Titans?"

Logan laughed when he heard the name. "We dropped the 'Teen' from our name a long time ago. And … I don't know. Maybe rejoin The Titans. But I like California, and I may just go solo out here for a while. Maybe L.A. I've met a few other Californian super-types out here, and maybe I'll start my own team. 'Titans West,' or something."

Hearing that name made Terra laugh. "I like that. Titans West, and their fearless leader, The Beast."

"Something like that, yeah."

Terra paused and just beamed at him with pride. "My B.B.," she said. "All grown up. I bet you'd make a great team leader."

"Robin taught me well," he replied. "So what about you? What are you doing now? What are your plans for the future?"

"Well … Literature. Specifically late Renaissance European literature. That's my major."

Logan laughed and shook his head. "An English major, huh? You know how we science majors feel about you liberal arts people, don't you?"

She shot him a surprised little dirty look. "Probably the same way we feel about you."

"Probably. So, since you were giving me shit about it, what are you going to do with your degree?"

"Teach. Probably there at the Institute. There are a number of X-Men in their thirties who started there as teenaged students. When they grew up they became teaching assistants, then got their education and became teachers. That's kinda the plan right now."

"So you're just gonna stay home?" he said, clearly not liking the idea. "How boring."

She shot him another dirty look. "Trust me, life as an X-Man is not boring. We're superheroes, B.B. You may have taken a break from that, but I haven't. I go around saving the world pretty regularly. But the Institute, the mansion, is … home. It's where I live and study while the world doesn't need saving, it's where my friends are, and I like it there, and I don't want to leave. But I'm happy for you, really, that your future is so exciting and wide open right now. Maybe The Titans, maybe start Titans West …"

"Maybe go solo," he put in. "There are a couple of solo artists out here."

"Oh, that'd be exciting, wouldn't it. Doing it all alone. I dunno, I think I'd at least want a partner."

"Probably safer. No, but I've really been thinking about doing it solo for a while. I've had maybe half a dozen incidents in two years where the city needed a hero, and I think I stepped up to the job well. I could be a one man fighting force for a while, until I get sick of it and decide to start Titans West. For you see …" he paused and cracked a grin, "I may be only one man, but I'm also one gorilla, one tiger, one grizzly bear, one Tyrannosaurus Rex, one …" He laughed, then continued, "My friend Mitch made that joke, and I liked it."

"It's not a joke, B.B., it's the truth," she said seriously. "You are a one man fighting force. I don't know if I ever told you this, but I was always really impressed with you in the field. You took out more badguys than Cyborg and Starfire combined."

"Well, I don't know about all that," he said modestly. "Starfire could get pretty wicked."

"I used to rank us in my head, you know. I figured Robin was the most dangerous because… well, because he's Robin. Then Raven, who I actually considered the most powerful. Then it was a toss-up between you and me. I couldn't decide which of us was …"

"I'd say that's pretty clearly you, Terra," Logan put in.

She just smiled smugly. "Probably. Robin, Raven, me, you … then Starfire then Cyborg."

"And this was a rating of what, again? How dangerous we were?"

"Overall, yeah."

Logan thought to himself, 'and you did this so that you'd know in which order to kill us all, right?'. He did his best to dismiss the thought. Her involvement with Slade and the repercussions of it would need to be dealt with, need to be talked about. But not now. Now was a happy time.

"And where do you stand in the ranks of the X-Men, then?" he asked cheerfully.

Terra sat up proudly. "Near the top."

"I'm sure you're right about that," he said with a smile. "So it's all teenaged mutants, then? No aliens or robo-men or anything?"

"Well, we're not all teenagers anymore, but yes, we're all mutants."

"How many X-Men are there, then? You say you're 'near the top,' but out of what?"

"Oh, it's hard to say. Our ranks change all the time. Really, B.B., the X-Men are nothing like the Titans, where it was just the six of us hanging out all day. This is a school whose student body is growing every year."

"Yeah, but they can't all be superheroes, can they?" Logan replied.

"Of course not. Being an X-Man is … it's almost separate from being Xavier's student. There are a constantly growing number of students. Some of them are also student superheroes. Then there are the grown-ups who lead the missions."

"The faculty?"

"Yeah. Storm and Dr. Grey and Logan … well, Logan's not actually faculty, but he's around a lot." Terra stopped and started to laugh to herself at a thought she just had. "I know why I have such a hard time with calling you 'Logan', B.B." she said, still trying not to laugh. "Or The Beast, for that matter. I all ready know a Logan, and a Beast, too."

"There are X-Men named Logan and Beast? Great," he replied. "So?"

"So I can't call you Logan if I already know one."

"Why not? Do you have any idea how many Mikes I know?"

Terra had to think a second. "You make a good point," she conceded. "Still, Logan is a short, gruff, hairy little man with big steel claws and insane spiky hair. And … _oh my God,_ all the girls have such a crush on him! He is so the 'outlaw bad boy.' He's a loner, but he works with this team because, well, we need him sometimes."

"So is Logan technically an X-Man or a friend of the X-Men? What's his professional name?"

"Wolverine. And yes, when he's with us he's one of us. His costume has an 'X' on it, and everything. He just frequently goes off to do his own thing for weeks to months at a time."

"And do you have a crush on Logan, Terra?" he asked with a smile.

She looked away shyly. "I did, for a while. But as I grew up I realized, as attractive as he is, and he is, in more ways than one, he's not the type of guy I really want."

"And what type is that?" he asked.

She paused and looked at him for several seconds before she replied. "I guess I just want someone more dependable than that. Someone I could count on."

"So you can't trust Logan, then?"

"Oh, I'd trust Logan with my life, I just couldn't trust him to make it to my birthday party. Something always comes up with him, and I want someone who I know will be there for me."

"And he's called Wolverine, huh? Must have some serious attitude to live up to that."

"Believe me, he does," Terra replied confidently.

"You're familiar with wolverines, right? The little … badger-like …" Rather than try to describe the animal to her, Logan morphed into a large, green wolverine, standing in the seat of his chair. Terra jumped a bit and her eyes got wide for a moment.

"Wow," she said softly to the wolverine, who stood staring at her, head cocked to one side curiously. "I haven't seen you do that in seven years. That is so cool." She cracked a big smile and leaned in closer to him. "Do it again!"

Standing in the chair, the wolverine fluidly shifted into a seal, then a penguin, then his mass condensed upward into a hummingbird, which hovered low over the table and landed as a gecko. Terra clapped her hands and made that same soft, little squeal of happiness she had made earlier, and Logan's heart melted again. Only this time, he was a gecko at the moment so she couldn't tell. He did his best Monarch butterfly and flittered up to her, landing on her finger. She just held him on her outstretched finger and watched him for several seconds.

"I used to have a hairpin like this, you know," she said to the butterfly. "It was silver, and right about your size." Logan lifted off of her finger, hovered over his seat, and morphed human again. They looked each other in the eye for several seconds, then Terra reached out to take his hand again. "It is so good to see you again, B.B." she said, softly and sincerely.

"I know exactly what you mean, Terra," he replied. After another several seconds of just looking into each other's eyes, Logan continued, "So tell me about this other Beast. Is he as cool as I am? No," he held up a finger to stop her from answering. "No, what I mean is, does he deserve the name as much as I do?"

Terra had to stop and consider this for a moment. "No, I think you have a better claim to that name than he does. He's just 'a' beast, but you're all beasts."

"Good. Thank you," he replied simply. "What kind of beast does he turn into, then?"

"Well, first, he doesn't 'turn into' anything, he's always blue and furry."

Logan's eyebrows went up. "OK …" he said.

"What?" she said defensively. "You're always green, B.B. So what if he's always blue and furry?"

Logan smiled and shook his head. "No, that's fine. I just mean how is he, ya know, 'bestial'?"

"Well, he's like an animal. The way he fights is like a gorilla or something. He's very strong and very agile. He jumps around like a big monkey and can hit really hard."

"So he's just some generic kind of 'beast-man,' then? You're right, I deserve the name more."

This made Terra laugh, then Logan continued, "Probably a jock. Sounds like a jock."

"What?" Terra said, surprised. "Why?"

"There are exceptions, of course, I'm just saying that big, tough, strong guys are frequently…"

"But B.B.," Terra explained, "Beast isn't the 'big, tough, strong guy' type. He's only big, tough, and strong because he's a mutant. Inside he's a nerd, a geek, a brain. I should tell you that only X-Men who work with him get to call him Beast. To the student body he's Dr. McCoy."

"Doctor?" he replied. "Oh, I get it. I had thought The Beast was a student."

Terra shook her head. "Senior faculty. He and Dr. Grey answer only to the Professor directly."

"And what does Dr. McCoy teach?"

"Every science known to man, plus English and French literature."

Logan was suitably impressed. "How … well-rounded of him," he replied.

"The man's a mega-genius," she said seriously. "And, oddly enough, a blue furry monkey man."

"Sounds like a pretty cool guy," Logan said. He looked like he had another question, but Terra beat him to it.

"Enough X-Men talk," she said. "Tell me about some of your friends."

Logan laughed softly. "Fine. I was just going to say, does he have a tail?"

"No."

"Then he's a blue furry ape man. Monkeys have tails."

Terra laughed. "You know these things. You study animals. I know, sorry. Ape man. Anyway …"

Logan had thought that when he said that earlier, she had been reading the menu and not paying attention to him. He was surprised she had remembered that.

"That's right," he said with over-done mock pride. "I study animals."

"So tell me about some of your friends, 'studier of animals'."

"Well, there's Mitch. Bio-chem major. He's going into pharmaceuticals, plans to be extraordinarily wealthy by the time he's 35. Says he just needs to patent the right drug and he'll be set for life."

"I forget," Terra said with a smile, "that you're friends would all be civilians, now."

"I am a college student, ya know," he replied, as though that should have been obvious. "Here's a thought … should I tell you about Logan's student friends, or Beast's hero friends?"

Terra looked up at that. "Oh, so you have some, then? Superhero friends?"

"A few." Logan went onto describe Impulse, the teenaged son of The Flash, Power Girl, the Kryptonian Supergirl wannabe, and Flamebird, the non-powered martial artist with gadgets galore. Beast was closer to her than the other two, partly because working with her reminded him a lot of working with Robin. He went into not much more detail than he had given David, because to tell the truth, he really didn't know any of them that well. Apparently, it showed.

"You're not that close to any of them, are you?" she asked.

Logan shrugged. "We're in the same line of work, you know? That's really about it. None of them stick to San Francisco, anyway."

"All my close friends are also superheroes. Yours aren't. It's kinda weird."

"I know what you mean. Growing up, all my friends were superheroes, but I've been living the civilian life for two years now. I've gotten used to it."

Terra look at him seriously. "B.B., I don't know how to tell you this, but … you're green." Logan burst out laughing, and she continued, "I mean, it's pretty obvious you're a mutant superhero. Have you been able to fit in around here?"

Logan patted her hand. "No worries. I'm doing fine. Sure, there's the occasional dumb-ass that doesn't like mutants, but I know how to speak their language."

"How's that?"

"I beat the snot out of 'em," he said with a big grin. "That usually teaches them some respect."

"Now you sound like my Logan," Terra muttered.

Logan looked slightly hurt. "I want to be your Logan," he said softly.

Terra sighed. "But you're my B.B." She stopped and pointed an accusatory finger at him. "You already said you'd always be my B.B. You can't take it back."

Logan just shook his head and groaned. "No, but anyway … mostly I've found that people look up to us. Superheroes have fans, just like movie stars and pro athletes. Since I'm one of the only superheroes in the neighborhood, I'm actually kind of a celebrity around here."

"I'll bet that must make you terribly popular with the ladies," Terra said with a smile. Logan looked away and blushed, but didn't respond. Terra giggled, and continued, "I missed that, making you blush. There's something about a green man turning red …" This made Logan bury his face in one hand, blushing harder, trying not to laugh.

"Anyway …" he started after a moment. "Anyway, yes. I call it The Quarterback Effect. You know, the head cheerleader is always with the star quarterback. It's the same with musicians. If you're any good with an electric guitar, chicks flock to you."

"So, B.B., are you telling me that chicks flock to you now?" she asked with an amused grin. "Because I only have one thing to say about that."

"What's that?" he asked.

"It's about damn time. You've always deserved it."

Logan laughed, blushing again. "I guess …" he said after a moment. "I guess in the last two years I've had my share of girlfriends. They've all been pretty short-lived, though. There's only been one girl I ever really loved."

"Who's that?"

"You," he said with deliberate casualness. Terra closed her eyes, sighed heavily, and suddenly looked like she might cry again. She reached out and squeezed Logan's hand. After several seconds, she whispered, "I love you, too, B.B."

Suddenly, Logan thought he might cry again, too. They squeezed each other's hands for several seconds, looking into each other's eyes. The moment was broken when the waitress walked up to the table.

"Oh, sorry, is this a bad time?" she asked. "I was just going to clear your plates."

"No, go ahead, Becca," Logan replied, releasing his grip on Terra. As the waitress cleared the table, and set down the bill, Terra reached for her purse.

"Terra, are you kidding?" Logan started. "I'm buying you dinner."

"No, really," Terra said with a big smile, "this isn't my money. David said …" she paused and made sure the waitress was out of earshot. "David said since my money was all minted in another dimension, it might be considered counterfeit here. So, just to avoid any possible confusion, he gave me some cash that was printed here, in this world."

"How generous of him," Logan said flatly. "David's not buying you dinner, either. I am."

"OK, if you want to. It's just … David gave me like 1,000 bucks, cash. I'm not going to use all that in a weekend."

"Fine. You can buy dinner tomorrow night," he replied as he pulled a debit card from his wallet. He motioned with the bill toward Becca, who almost immediately came by to pick it up.

"So, what now?" he asked Terra.

"I don't know. This is your town."

"Well, what do you want to do? There are any number of bars around here where we could go have another drink. The one here at the Shrimp is actually perfectly good."

"I don't know. Don't really care," she said. "What do you want to do?"

"Do you shoot pool?" he asked.

"Sure, a little. You're probably a shark, aren't you?" she said with a smile.

"Only when I go to the beach," he said with mock sincerity.

Terra laughed at his dumb joke. "No, seriously, do you have a favorite pool hall or something?"

"The Rack. It's near campus, near my place. Actually …" He looked under the table and nudged her duffle bag with his boot. "We should probably go to my place first and drop off your luggage."

"If you think we should. Why?" Terra asked.

Logan cracked a big grin. "You haven't seen my ride. C'mon." He quickly filled out the check, leaving his friend Becca a generous tip, then stood up, pulled on his cycle jacket, and picked up Terra's duffle. "Let me show you my baby."


	4. FOUR: After dinner

FOUR

(after dinner)

"You ride a motorcycle?!" Terra exclaimed upon seeing Logan's Harley. "My little B.B. is a biker, now? Oh, my God."

"Oh, don't look so shocked," Logan replied, terribly amused by her reaction. "I must have told you how I always wanted one."

Terra thought for a second. "I remember you were lusting after some moped. You showed me a picture of it in a magazine once."

"Exactly."

"But sweetie, this is not a moped. This is a big-ass motorcycle."

Logan pulled out some straps and started securing the duffle to one of his saddlebags. "It was a natural progression," he said as he worked. "I got that moped, the one in the magazine. It just took till I was 16 to do it. Then when I was 18 I traded up to a motorcycle."

Terra gestured at the Harley. "That's quite a trade up."

"No, not this one. I got a little Honda 750. Good bike. When I turned 20 and moved out here, I traded up again, to the beauty you see before us."

"This is a Harley, right? I don't really know bikes."

"This is a Harley Davidson springer softtail. Evo engine. Mostly stock, but I've upgraded a few things. New two-into-one pipes, new seat, new handlebars. And, of course, a little custom paint." He pointed to the green stripes on the black gas tank, then to the matching stripes on his jacket. "Matches my 'Beast' costume, which I just realized you haven't seen yet. These …" he gestured back and forth from his arm to the gas tank, "are Beast stripes." He unlocked his helmet and pointed at the Beast stripes on the temples. "These, too. Here, pull your hair back," he said as he went to put the helmet on Terra.

Logan sat on his bike with Terra pressed against his back, her arms wrapped around him.

"So, in my duffle bag …" Terra started, then had to stop when the engine roared to life. It gave a deep, throaty growl, but wasn't as excessively loud as she was expecting. "In my duffle bag," she started again, "I brought my X-Men uniform."

Logan turned and looked at her, laughing at what she was implying.

"I was wondering," she continued, "if I might have the honor of patrolling the city with The Beast some night while I'm here."

"That sound's fun," he replied, "but I'll warn you, my city is pretty safe. We won't see much action, if any."

"That's fine. I mainly just want you to show me around town from the air."

As they left the parking lot and pulled onto the city street, conversation necessarily came to a stop due to the noise of the wind and the engine. Logan casually cruised across town, blissfully enjoying having Terra wrapped around him.

x

After a short, pleasant ride, they arrived at Logan's apartment complex. He parked, un-strapped Terra's duffle from the saddlebag, and led her up to his second story one bedroom.

"Well, this is home," he said as he turned on the light. Terra looked around the spacious living room. It had couches for seating quite a few guests and opened onto a dining room and good-sized kitchen.

"Nice place, B.B.," she said, sounding impressed. "You're living well."

"Thanks," he said casually. "I like it." As he took off his cycle jacket and tossed in on the couch, he continued, "You can leave your shoes there by the door, and I'll take your jacket."

Terra slipped out of her heeled sandals and handed her black jacket to Logan, who picked up his own jacket again and opened the closet.

"Sorry, old habit," he muttered. "My jacket usually goes on the couch." He picked up her duffle, saying, "I'll just drop this on the bed. Have a look around."

When he came back out of his room, he saw Terra looking at the paintings on his wall. She had stripped down to a spaghetti-strap top and a mini-skirt, and Logan's eyes slowly played over her body. Her bare arms, bare legs, bare feet. The way her long blonde hair brushed against the bare skin of her back.

"Oh, my God," he barely muttered to himself. "Oh, my God, she is hot."

"Hmm?" Terra asked, glancing up at him. He just shook his head, and she turned back to the wall and pointed, laughing, at a framed poster of Kermit the Frog. "I like this, B.B., I really like this," she said. "This is definitely you."

"He's always been an idol of mine. I had that picture up in my room at the Tower, too. Remember?"

"Um … I don't think I do," she muttered as she continued across to the dining room, where he had his computer. She touched the mouse, and the screen came to life. Staring back at Terra was a picture of herself when she was fifteen. It was a waist-up shot of her in her Titans uniform, smiling at something off camera.

"Oh, my God, B.B. You've got my picture on your desktop," she said softly.

"Oh, that," Logan replied, a little embarrassed. "I can explain that. See, that …"

"What's to explain, B.B. I think it's really sweet that you have this."

"But, see, my desktop is just a random skip through my screensaver, which is a slideshow of a whole big bunch of photos from my time with the Titans. So it's just, random chance, really, that your picture was up when we walked in, because it changes every 15 minutes or so."

Terra looked disappointed and didn't respond. He quickly continued, "It's just that I don't want you to think I've been, well, obsessing, or something, over you. Not in a weird way, anyway."

This made her laugh. "I didn't think that, B.B." she said gently. "If anything, I've kind of obsessed over you."

"I do keep your picture up, though, on the wall in here," he said motioning to the bedroom. "With some other pictures. Want to see?"

As she started toward him, she said, "I don't have any pictures of you, B.B., but I did have Amanda. A telepath who's also a gifted artist, she took your picture out of my memory and based a beautiful portrait on it. I have it on my wall at home. Here's the cool part; she did it all in shades of green pastel."

"That is pretty cool," he agreed as he led her into the bedroom, which also impressed her as comfortably good-sized. A queen-sized bed sat in one corner, and the whole room was lined with bookcases and shelves. On one wall were several framed photographs. Terra looked closer and saw that the largest one was a close-up of her. The others were all of the other Titans. One that caught her eye was a dramatic group shot of the five of them poised for action. The backdrop behind them was huge block text that read 'TEEN TITANS.'

Terra pointed to it. "What's this one?" she asked him, laughing at the picture.

"Publicity shot," he replied, "and yes, I know it's cheesy. That's why I like it."

"And where'd it come from, again?"

"Some teenager-oriented magazine was doing an article on superheroes, and interviewed us and a few other guys, The Kid and such, for this article. They took some pics, of course, for the article, and I liked this one."

"Wait," Terra interrupted. "You know someone called 'The Kid'?"

Logan laughed. "Kid Flash. Mostly people just call him 'Kid Flash.' Those of us who really know him often refer to him as 'The Kid.' He's a good guy. The Kid filled my position with the Titans when I left for school. I think he's filling the vacancy I left quite nicely. Look…" He pointed to another group shot, to a man in an extremely loud red and yellow body suit. "That's Kid Flash."

Terra looked more closely and noticed that Cyborg, Starfire, and Raven were there, but Beast Boy and Robin were both missing, replaced by this red and yellow 'Kid' and another guy, dressed in all black. He had dark blue markings on his chest, long black hair, and a mask kind of like Robin's.

"Who's this guy?" she asked, pointing to him.

"Nightwing," Logan replied.

"Did he replace Robin? Who's in charge now?"

"He is Robin, remember? I told you, he changed his name."

"Right," Terra remembered, then looked more closely at the black-clad figure. "That's Robin, huh? I guess he grew up, too."

"We all have. We-"

"Oh, look! Cyborg's got hair, now!" she said excitedly. "It looks good. And Raven's grown hers out a bit, which looks good, too. Starfire is as stunningly beautiful as ever. How old is this picture?"

"Um," he had to think, "about a year, now."

"So that's The Titans these days. Wow," Terra said softly as she quit studying the pictures and looked up to Logan. "We've all grown up so much. You guys have all changed so much."

"I'm sure they'd agree that you've grown and changed, too, Terra."

"Would they?" she asked him, softly and seriously. "I mean, do you think they'd see that I've changed, that I'm not … what I was, shortly before I left?"

"If you mean, 'will they see that I'm not evil?' then, yes, I think they will," he replied with a grin.

Terra rolled her eyes. "I'm being serious, here, B.B. Do you think they could ever …"

"What, Terra?" he asked softly. "Forgive you, be your friend again? Yes, I think they could."

"Really?" she whispered.

"I think if you spend some time with them and demonstrate to them that you're the good person we all always knew you could be, then yes, I really think so."

"Wow," she muttered, as she turned away from him and sat on the edge of the bed. "I don't think I'm ready for that, seeing them again. I'll be honest, B.B., I was really glad to hear that you lived alone now, because I wasn't looking forward to seeing the others."

"I don't think you have anything to fear, Terra." He patted her on the shoulder, and said with a touch of sarcasm, "It's not like they're gonna try to beat you up, or something."

He left his hand on her bare shoulder, and she reached up and put a hand on his. "I know, B.B. It's just … I don't …" she stopped and shook her head. "I don't know. I don't want to have to think about it right now."

Logan knelt in front of her, his hands on the sides of her legs, and looked up into her eyes. "Then don't. Let's go do something," he said. "The night is young. Let me take you out somewhere."

Her face lit up. "What shall we do?"

"I don't know. You want to ride up to The Rack, have a beer and shoot some pool? Some of the guys might be up there. I could show you off to everyone. Mitch is dying to meet you."

"Hmm," Terra replied with a mischievous grin. "That could be fun, but you know what I really want to do?"

"What's that?"

"Come here," she said, standing up. "Let me show you something." She dug into her duffle bag, producing blue jeans and a couple of shirts, and then pulled out a heavy long-sleeve top and held it up to him. It was brown and tan, with black across the top of the shoulders, and there was a stylized circular red 'X' logo on the chest, repeated again on the shoulders.

"What do you think?" she asked.

Logan pointed at the chest. "I like the 'X' logo. If you want to go out tonight, that's fine, I'm just warning you we won't see any action."

"Oh, that's fine, B.B. I just want to fly around with you for a while."

"Sounds fun. I'll just … let you change, then," he said as he backed out of the room.

"Won't be a minute," she called out as he shut the door.

x

Logan paced slowly back and forth in his living room, trying desperately not to pick apart every detail of the evening, to over-analyze, to second guess. He tried to keep himself focused on the present. Showing her the city by air shouldn't be too hard. There were the parks, the bay, the bridge. San Francisco is a fairly scenic place to be, actually.

After a few minutes, Terra stepped out in her X-Men uniform. The brown, tan, and black top was completed by matching brown and tan mid-length shorts, a heavy black utility belt, black gloves and small, black ankle boots. Logan saw her bare legs and couldn't help laughing.

"What?" she cried defensively.

"What is it with you and your shorts?" he asked.

"What, I like shorts, OK? They're comfortable, and I can run in them."

"Your Titans outfit years ago had shorts."

"Exactly. What's wrong with shorts?" she demanded.

"No, nothing, sorry," he quickly replied. "I just think it's really cute, is all. There's something child-like about the shorts, but then on the other hand, you've got such damn sexy legs."

Terra gave a fake little modest smile. "Yes, I know, there's that to consider, too," she said playfully. "I do think a superheroine should be as sexy as is practical. I mean, she should be a bad-ass, and she should look good doing it. Starfire had that mastered."

"She has it perfected now," he said. "You should see her. But you, Terra … you are just as seriously hot, and bad-ass, as she ever was."

Terra gave a genuine modest little smile this time, blushing a bit. "You're so sweet, B.B. Well, come on then," she said, motioning him towards the door, "Let's see you in the all new 'Beast' costume."

"Right," he said, walking past her. "Won't be a sec." He shut the door, pulled one of his three costumes out of the closet, and quickly stripped down and got dressed again. Underpants, undershirt, steel groin cup, very important. Black pants and top made of lightweight leather and canvas, with plates of integrated Kevlar in the chest and back. It was the same type of light body armor that Robin and The Batman wore, and Logan loved it. His was all black with dark forest green tiger stripes, which just matched his hair, across the biceps, thighs, and ribs. Then high, black leather steel-toed boots with smaller stripes across the upper calves. Each boot had an integrated sheath to hold an extending baton. Then the utility belt, in matching green, which had become more and more like Robin's over the years, and held every damn thing he could possibly think of. Tight black gloves with dark green trim completed the look, and he left the bedroom to find Terra sitting at his computer, staring at the screensaver photos of The Titans. She looked up at him and her eyes widened.

"Wow, B.B. You look really good," she said, standing up to come towards him. She gently caressed his chest with her fingers, saying, "Is this leather? Is this armor?"

"Yes, and yes. Robin had it made for me."

"Very cool." Terra slowly knelt down in front of him, saying, "Like the equipment belt, like the stripes a lot. What are the sticks in your boots?"

"Sticks. They're called escrima. They extend to a little over two feet."

"Martial arts fighting sticks, right?" she said as she stood up. "Did Robin teach you to use those?"

He smiled proudly. "Quite well. They became my weapon of choice in our sparring workouts. He also gave me this," he said, producing from his belt what looked like an overly thick metal cigar. It quickly elongated in his hand into a five foot bo staff.

"I remember that," Terra said. "Robin used to use it a lot."

"Still does. This particular extending staff saved his life once, and became kind of a good luck charm for him. It was his lucky stick for quite a while, and when I moved out here he gave it to me, for protection."

"And a little of Robin's infamous luck. That's so sweet of him."

The Beast collapsed the staff and put it away, saying, "I feel certain that someday this little stick is going to save my butt, I just don't know how."

Terra took a few steps back from him and eyed him up and down one more time. "You look great, B.B. You look really great. You really look like The Beast. You're not a 'Boy' anymore."

Beast just smiled, then gestured toward the door. "So … you want to …?"

"In a second. First," she started, walking back to the computer, "I wanted to ask you about some of these pictures. Can you find certain pics off this slideshow for me?"

"Sure, which ones?"

"Well … now I can't remember all the ones I had a question about," she said as she sat down again. "How do I just start the slideshow again?"

Logan leaned across her, hit a key combination, and the screensaver started up. He knelt down next to Terra, rested the side of his head against her shoulder, and watched the slideshow of old photos for a while.

"Raven always was such a hotty," Terra commented. "And she never knew it, that was the best part …" A pic came up of Cyborg playing volleyball against a massive green gorilla, and Terra laughed. The next was of the same gorilla leaping toward the camera aggressively, baring it's fangs. "Oh, you just look so menacing. I like that one," she commented. The screen changed to a shot of Terra in the civilian clothes she was wearing the day she first met him.

"What?" she exclaimed. "This is what I was talking about. I remember that day. No one had a camera."

"Cyborg took it," he replied casually.

"Did he have a camera?" she asked, then the screen changed again. "There's another of me! How many shots of me do you have?"

"I don't know, maybe 25 or so. Why?"

"Where'd they all come from?"

"Cyborg. I told you."

"I don't remember him running around with a camera all the time."

Logan shook his head and smiled. "Sweetie, the man's left eye is a video camera." As understanding dawned on Terra's face, he continued. "He's got a continuous digital feed, and can snap stills out of it and save them at will. He can save full audio-video, too."

"And he does this a lot?"

"Constantly."

Terra thought about this for a second, smiling at a cute picture of Robin and Starfire together. "Why?" she asked after a moment.

"Why does he take pictures, you mean? I guess just because he can. He picked up photography as a hobby just because it's so damn easy for him. Plus, it's handy sometimes to have someone to document what happens on a mission, for reference later."

"Ha! Look at Starfire!" she cried out, then a moment later, "Robin. He just oozes coolness, doesn't he? … Look, there's us! We were so cute together. I think that's the day we met."

"That's actually within minutes of our first meeting. Cy snapped several pics when we were first getting introduced."

"Wow, I had no idea I was on camera. I'd have fixed my hair."

This made Logan laugh. "You looked great, Terra. You always did … Even there," he said as the picture changed to one of Terra curled up on the couch asleep in her fluffy white bathrobe. "Even that one, especially in that one … you are beautiful. Always."

"Aww, B.B.," she said softly. "That's so sweet." She looked like she might say something else, then laughed suddenly when the picture changed to Raven flat on her back in the grass with a mid-sized, short haired, bright green dog sitting on her chest, licking her face.

"Oh, my God, B.B. What are you doing to Raven?" she cried, still laughing.

"Just playing with her," he replied casually. "Ray has a playful side, she just keeps it well hidden. I like to pull it out sometimes."

"I'm surprised she'd let you live after something like that."

"She likes it, she just doesn't want anyone to know that she likes it."

Terra's face grew suddenly somber when the picture changed to one of Robin engaged in hand to hand combat with Slade. "I like this one of Robin kicking Slade's ass," she said with a touch of anger in her voice.

"Yeah, I should have warned you, there a couple of pics of Slade in here."

"Cyborg documenting the fight?"

"Yeah. I just thought it was a good action shot of Rob. Sorry."

"It's OK," she said softly. "Pictures of him don't bother me anymore. Actually, you know Amanda, the artist that did a portrait of you for me? I had her do one of Slade, too. I know it sounds silly, but I'd talk to it, the picture, during sessions with the Professor."

"Sessions? You mean like psychotherapy?"

She smiled. "Yeah, with a telepathic shrink. Talk about intense. But, yes, he helped me deal with … everything. Helped me come to terms with it."

Logan was afraid the conversation had finally turned to the dreaded serious talk about Slade, and his stomach started to knot, but then Terra laughed aloud and pointed at the screen, to a small, green, bushy-tailed critter somewhere between a squirrel and a monkey.

"What is that?" she asked. "It's so cute!"

"Lemur," Logan said, happy to change the subject. "Specifically, that is a northern laughing lemur. I've won several fights with that form."

"What? How?"

"I use it to piss them off. If I get an opponent really mad, he'll make a blind charge or do some other stupid thing, and then I've got him."

"Yes, I understand the value of taunting the enemy," she said with a smile. "How do you do it as a lemur?"

"Point and laugh. OK, picture this," he said, taking a few steps away, toward the couch. "I'm fighting with whoever, and I just tripped him or dropped him on his head, or especially if it was something more embarrassing, like a can of paint fell on him, or something, then while he's getting up, I do this …"

Logan stepped up onto the back of the couch, morphing in mid-step into a lemur, which stood on its hind legs, pointed a finger at Terra, threw its head back, and launched into this thunderous, cackling, uproarious laughter that sounded a bit like a hyena, but even more eerily human.

Terra squealed, put her hands to her face and burst out laughing as well. The lemur paused, stared wide-eyed at Terra for a moment, then pointed at her again, putting the other hand on its belly, threw its head back and again burst out in hysterical laughter. Terra rose from her seat and came towards him, laughing too hard to speak.

"I can … I can see … where that would make … an effective taunt," she finally got out. As she stepped up to the lemur, it stopped laughing, looking up at her curiously. "That sure is cute," she said, looking down at it. Logan morphed human in front of her, his back to the couch, and they looked each other in the eye for a moment.

"Of course," she continued, "that's pretty damn cute, too." They were standing quite close, facing each other, and Logan thought for a second that they might be about to kiss, then Terra took a step back, motioning toward the computer. "How many pictures are on that thing?" she asked, and the moment was over.

"I don't know, maybe 200 or so," he replied.

"Well, we'll have to get back to that. I want to see some more of those. Right now, though… Take me to the roof, Beast," she said, smiling. "Show me your city."

The Beast nodded and started toward the door. "Don't you want to go downstairs first?" he asked. "Find a rock to stand on?"

She shook her head and smiled. "I'm not fifteen anymore, B.B. I've refined my methods a bit." Rather than take a step toward him, she gently lifted into the air and floated across the room to hover in front of him, her head inches from the ceiling.

"Terra!" he exclaimed. "You got rocks in your pockets!"

Terra patted her heavy black utility belt. "It's pretty obvious, really. I'm surprised I didn't think of it earlier than I did. Rocks in my belt, rocks in my shoes, little stones embedded across my shoulders and back. My whole costume is a flight suit. I actually got the idea from Magneto, who does the same thing with metal."

"Who's Magneto?" he asked as she settled to the ground in front of him.

"He's … well … he's complicated. I'll tell you about him later. Right now let's go flying," she said as she ushered him out the door. Logan locked his door and walked her to the edge of the 2nd floor stairwell, where he climbed up onto the railing. Terra quickly climbed up next to him with an excited smile.

"Ready?" he said. "Go," and he leapt off the rail, morphing into an eagle, as Terra soared out next to him. As they pulled high into the sky, Beast got some distance from her and watched her fly. She was as natural in the air as Raven or Star, and looked like she'd been flying for years, which, of course, he was sure she had been. Pulling higher and higher, they flew out away from his apartment and over the small peninsula city of San Francisco.


	5. FIVE: Late Friday night

FIVE

(late Friday night)

Sailing over the busy streets, Terra took in the beautiful city. A couple of times she would point at an interesting building and turn to Beast, give him a frustrated look, and say nothing. Finally, she said, "Oh, what's that?" and turned to him with the same frustrated look. "And, of course, you can't answer me because you're a bird. Come here …" She flew closer to him, taking position with him flapping his wings directly below her chest. "Now morph human," she said. Beast gave her an uncertain squawk. "Trust me, I carry my X-Men friends like this all the time. Morph human."

He hesitated for another moment, decided he should trust her, and morphed human. She immediately dove into him, pressing her chest against his back and wrapping her arms around him firmly. "See, I've got you," she said.

Beast fidgeted in her grip, trying to get comfortable with all his weight being held up by her arms across his chest. "Star carries Robin like this all the time," he said. "I always thought it didn't look very comfortable. I was right."

"OK, sorry," she said, shifting him in her arms again. "The others don't complain. This is the way most of us who can fly carry those who can't."

"If it was tactically necessary on the job, then I wouldn't mind," he explained. "But it's not exactly comfortable."

"OK, just two seconds. You know how I used to fly, with a big rock? Where could I find one of those around here?"

"A park, or maybe the beach."

"Oh, beach sand! That would be perfect."

"Follow me," he said, then morphed out of her grasp into a small swallow and pulled away. As he got a little distance from her he took the form of a good, fast falcon and took off on a little game of follow the leader.

"Oh, wanna race me, huh?" Terra called out as he pulled away, then she poured on the speed and quickly pulled onto his tail. They twisted and turned and played together, dogfighting across the city skyline. Beast directed the dogfight steadily west, and within minutes the coastline was in sight. Terra paused and hovered, staring at the beauty of the moon over the Pacific.

"Race ya to the beach!" she called out, then took off like a rocket. Beast gained some more altitude as quickly as he could, and began an aggressive drive for the coast. His well practiced flight forms shifted smoothly between the Asian spine-tailed swift, which could reach over 100 mph, and the peregrine falcon, which could power dive at more than 200. Near the end of the dive, he was moving in excess of 200 mph, but Terra was keeping pace with him.

Ultimately, she shot ahead, just beating him to the waterline, then spun in a wide arc and came around to land on the beach. She was laughing as he came down and landed human next to her. "I win!" she cried. "Good race, B.B. You almost had me."

"I'm just surprised you didn't whoop me more soundly than that," he replied. "You've got telekinesis, I've just got wings. Anyway, there are some little boulders and stuff off that way …"

"No, actually, all this sand is better," she said. Turning away from him, she held out her hands and they began to glow pale yellow. Sand rose in a column from the ground and coalesced into a growing blob a few feet off the ground. The blob quickly formed into a thick disk the size of a king-sized bed. She stepped up on to it, and it gave gently under her feet but supported her weight.

"Climb aboard," she said, offering him her hand. He took her hand and stepped up onto the telekinetically compacted sand, which felt like a cushion under his boots. They sat down together in the center of the sand, Terra making herself comfortable against Logan's shoulder.

"We don't need all that excess," she muttered, as the outer rim of the disk was dropped and fell away, leaving a much smaller platform, just right for the two of them to sit comfortably. As the compacted sand platform rose higher into the night sky, Terra turned to Logan and said, "OK, _now_ you can show me your city, now that you can talk to me."

He re-adjusted his weight and put his arm around her waist, saying, "Yes, this is definitely much better. OK, then. North, to the bridge."

x

They cruised around the greater San Francisco Bay area for hours, taking in the sights, talking about nothing, sitting in silence, enjoying each other's company. At one point, Terra said, "Oh, hey, Beast Boy, what's that building over there?" Logan groaned and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, resting his head gently against hers.

"Sweetie," he started gently, "You can get away with calling me B.B. because, well, I like being 'your B.B.,' but please don't call me Beast Boy. It's just Beast now. Or Logan. Logan is good. Actually, since we're both in costume, why don't you stick with Beast."

Terra laughed and shook her head. "You're really sensitive about your name, now, aren't you?" she asked with an amused smile.

"I just don't want you calling me 'Boy' anymore. Especially not if we're in public. It's not me anymore. I've outgrown it."

"OK," Terra said apologetically. "OK, I just … even though you've grown up and changed so much, you're still the same Beast Boy to me. You're still my B.B."

"Like I said, it makes me very happy to know that I'm still 'your B.B.,' but please don't call me 'Boy' anymore."

Terra turned to him and gently kissed him on the cheek. "My B.B.," she said warmly. "All grown up." They rode in silence for several seconds, then she asked, "How long has it been, now? Since you were Beast Boy?"

"About two years. Since I moved out here."

"And how long were you Beast Boy?"

"How long?" He seemed surprised by the question. "You mean how long have I gone by Beast Boy? My whole life."

"No, but … I guess it would be different when you're first starting out as a hero. But in the beginning did you have a problem with the others calling you Garfield, or something?"

"Who, you mean the other Titans? I'd been Beast Boy for years when I met them."

This surprised Terra. "Wait, you must have gone by your real name at some point, though."

"Yeah, when I was eleven."

"Really?"

"You really want me to explain the evolution of my name? OK, I'll start from the top. As a small child my parents called me Garfield, or Gar or Garfie or something. When I was twelve I joined The Doom Patrol. They're a superhero team."

"Don't know them," Terra commented.

"They're not around anymore. We split up. Anyway, I was twelve years old and a superhero, the token child member of the team, and they wanted to call me 'Kid Animal' or something, and I said no, that's stupid, I'll be … _Beast Boy!!"_

Terra laughed at his dramatic announcement of his name, and he replied defensively, "Give me a break, I was twelve! I did, though. I gave myself the name I would grow to hate."

"Do you really hate 'Beast Boy' now?" she asked.

He shrugged. "Eh. I'm just tired of it, is all. I feel like it doesn't fit me anymore."

She smiled at him warmly. "You'll still always be my B.B., though, right?"

Logan laughed. "Yes, I am still your B.B. I always will be."

"Good. Anyway, what did your parents have to say about you going off to be a hero so young?" she asked more seriously.

"One of my teammates was a good friend of my father, and promised to look after me. Plus, they decided I was mature enough to handle it. Plus, I was already a _freakin__'_ powerful little kid. I already knew a lot of my favorite combat forms that I still use today. I hadn't learned any dinosaur forms yet, obviously, but you know my favorite gorilla that I use all time? Learned him at a zoo when I was seven, and it's been a favorite form of mine ever since. So my combat ability was already there at twelve years old, I just needed time and practice. So I was with The Doom Patrol …"

"Wait, why is it obvious you couldn't do dinosaurs?" Terra interrupted.

Logan gave her a surprised look that said 'come on, don't tell me you don't get this.' "I mimic animals," he said. "That's my thing. It's kinda like I have two powers. I can shift my body from one form to another, and I can also meet any animal and mimic it. Turn myself into an exact green replica of it, down to the cellular level. That's how I got all the animal forms I know. That's how I learn new ones."

"And at twelve years old you hadn't met any dinosaurs, yet. Gotcha. You're right, sorry, that didn't click."

"I didn't travel back in time until I was with the Titans. Well, Teen Titans back then."

"That reminds me," she said, poking him with her finger. "Weren't we talking about your name change?"

"Right. So, I was Beast Boy of The Doom Patrol for two years, then we split up. I wandered aimlessly for a short while, then hooked up with Robin and them and we formed The Teen Titans. I was 14 at the time, and I saw no reason to change my name. I was Beast Boy of The Teen Titans now."

"So at what point did you decide you didn't like your name?" she asked.

"When I was around 16 or 17 it irked me a bit that I was the youngest Titan and they called me 'Boy.' It wasn't until I turned 18 that I decided to do something about it. It was on my birthday, and I told everyone I knew what I wanted them to do for me. I told them I was changing my name, and from now on I wanted them to call me … _Beast Man!!_"

Terra laughed at him again. "Seriously?"

"Seriously. I told them when we were out in public, specifically, they needed to address me as Beast Man, and they should try to do it at home, too. As a nickname, they could shorten it to just Beast, instead of B.B. It's shorter, anyway. One syllable."

"You gave this some thought, didn't you?"

"I really did. That's when I changed my costume, too, to give them a visual aid. I finally ditched that same suit I wore back when you knew me, and designed the first Beast Man suit, which was a lot like what I wear now, only the first draft had a lot more stripes."

"And you were going to be _Beast Man!!_" she said, in the same over-dramatic voice.

"Yeah, that lasted about a month. They continued to call me Beast Boy and I eventually got tired of correcting them. Then some time later Robin has this coming of age identity crisis and becomes Nightwing … and everyone's OK with it!"

"Well, he's Robin," Terra said simply. "The boy can do anything."

"True. Anyway, it wasn't long after that everyone else started feeling like they wanted to be more grown up now, too. We officially became The Titans, and we all kind of agreed that a good way to be more grown up was to start using our real names. So they call me Logan now, or Beast Boy. The still never call me The Beast."

"How sad. And rude, too. If Rob can call himself Nightwing, I think you can call yourself whatever the hell you want."

"Robin calls me … sorry, Nightwing calls me Beast. He understands the need for a name change."

"So … name changes. Who's who now? What do The Titans call each other?"

"Nightwing's name is Dick, Cybor-"

"Wait, Robin's name is Dick?" She stopped and thought about it. "Kind of fitting, actually."

"Be nice," Logan said with a grin. "Yes, Dick. And Cyborg is Victor, or Vic, and Starfire's Tamaranian name is _Koriand'r_, which translates as 'star fire,' but she now goes by Kory."

"And Raven?"

"Raven is her real name."

"Oh," Terra said, a bit surprised. "Didn't know that." She sat back and pondered all this for a second. "You all changed your names. That's funny, but at the same time, it makes sense. Back home, most of my friends have two names. Kitty/Shadowcat, Bobby/Iceman. I'm just Terra. Always have been. Even before my power manifested, it's just a subtle shift of vowel sounds from my birth name, anyway."

"You are of the one-named people, like Cher and Bono and Sting," he said. This made her laugh, and he continued, "You should be happy to have a good, simple name that you don't have to worry about. Imagine being saddled with 'Garfield' as an option."

"Garfield's not all that …" she started, then paused. "OK, it's not exactly good, either."

"I hated it," he replied. "Always have. When I was with The Doom Patrol and I did something wrong, then one of them, Mento, usually, would give me a look and go 'Garfield, behave,' and I _hated_ it! I'd always correct him, say, 'My name is Beast Boy, thank you. Do you want me to call you Steve?' and that would get me in more trouble."

"You were a smart-ass little kid, weren't you?" she asked playfully.

"I was terrible. From 12 on I was raised by superheroes, so what do you expect? Anyway, I was only 15 when I knew you. I was still a smart-ass little kid then, too."

"True enough."

"Only then, there weren't any grown-ups around anymore, so we all got even worse."

"That was when I knew you guys, and yes, you were all a bunch of sassy, smart-ass teenage kids, and so was I."

Logan paused and looked at her a bit more seriously. "Ya know, that's part of what this whole college thing is about for me. I've been a professional superhero since I was 12. I felt like I needed a little grounding in reality. I felt like I needed to get back in touch with the real people with normal lives. The people we spend our lives fighting to protect. I felt like I didn't know them, and needed to live among them for a while."

Terra gave an understanding nod. "I don't feel like 'one of them,' either. The civilians. The normals. I am a mutant among mutants, and that how I live my life. But when I go into the city, I can fit in with them, be accepted as one of them, and you really can't. That must be hard for you," she said seriously. "Has it … well, worked, out here? Do people accept you?"

He shrugged. "They treat me like everyone always has. I don't know, I was born green, I don't know any other way to be. I'm visibly very different and people react to that. I'm used to it. Been basically used to it my whole life."

"But still …" she said. "Out here, away from other mutants … ?"

"Well," he started, looking her in the eye seriously, "One, I'm not entirely away from other mutants. We are a global phenomenon, after all. But it's true that most of the superheroes are on the other coast. Two … I quote the wisdom of The Frog, who said … it ain't easy being green." He paused, then flashed her a little smile. She stifled a laugh, and he continued. "But this is me, this is what I am, and I wouldn't trade it for anything. I don't want to be a normal, I like being a hero."

"I know exactly what you mean. I'm proud to be a mutant. But there are times when it's nice to be able to fit in, and you can't, and I know that's got to be hard. I have this friend, Kurt, who's in your condition. He doesn't really like to leave the mansion."

"What's his deal? Is he green?"

"No, blue. And kinda fuzzy."

Logan looked briefly confused. "Blue and fuzzy? Oh, you mean the other Beast."

"No, that's Dr. Hank McCoy. I'm talking about Kurt. Kurt Wagner."

"Are you telling me you know two blue fuzzy guys?" Logan said in amused disbelief.

Terra nodded. "It's true. They both look really cool, though. They're very handsome in a sort of … 'Beauty and the Beast' sort of way. They're good-looking guys, but it's in a very animalistic way."

"Should I be jealous?" he asked, teasing her. "You may have discovered you've got a 'thing' for different-looking mutant guys, and you liked me because I was green, and now you've found these blue guys …"

Terra laughed and patted his shoulder. "No, no, it's not like that. Dr. McCoy is my teacher, and besides, he's just a little too much 'Beauty and the Beast' for me. Kurt's actually a handsome man in his own way, but he's just a good friend. No, but he's so cool looking, though. His whole body is covered in really short, soft … like a very short-haired dog, kind of fur that's dark, dark blue. And then his skin under it is kind of blue-black, too. And he's got little fangs… not like you did, B.B. You just had seriously screwed up teeth." She paused and gave him a playful smile. "Kurt has little feline-looking fangs, and elf-like pointed ears."

"Wow. This guy is a freak," Logan said in a sarcastic monotone.

Terra gave him a dirty look and smacked him in the arm. "Look who's talking!" she exclaimed.

"No, I'm just saying …" he started defensively. "I look like a human in face paint, and Kurt looks like some kind of 'Beauty and the Beast' animal thing. I kinda see why he wouldn't leave the house much."

"And I haven't even told you the rest of it. He's got a long, whip-like, highly prehensile tail, and his hands and feet are … deformed is the wrong word, they're just different. He's got three digits on each hand and foot, one opposing the other two like a thumb. But none of it looks 'wrong' or deformed, or anything, it's just different. It's like he's from an alien planet, or something."

"And how is this freakshow in a fight? Or, no, he's one of the non-superhero mutant students, isn't he? It's Dr. McCoy that's The Beast."

Terra looked annoyed with him. "No, Kurt is an X-Man," she explained patiently. "He is called Nightcrawler, and he's a bad-ass. And please stop calling him a freak. It's one of his least favorite insults to be called by the normals, and since it bothers him, it bothers me."

"I'm sorry, Terra," he said sincerely. "You know I don't mean anything by it. I'm sure Kurt is a great guy and a wonderful human being …"

"Yes, he is," she put in.

"But he is a freak, Terra. So am I, so are you. That's what being a mutant is. We're genetic freak accidents."

He started to continue, but Terra cut him off. "B.B., do you really think we're accidents? Because I think we're a progression of evolution."

Logan laughed and shook his head at her. "Terra, you shouldn't use words you don't understand. That's all evolution is. It's an endless series of genetic accidents. Some of them go badly and die, while others turn out well and survive. This is how a species evolves. I know these things. I study animals."

"Thank you for that lesson, Mr. Zoologist, but I know how evolution works. What you call accidents I think are more properly called mutations, and like I said, I'm proud to be a mutant."

"Two words for the same thing, but yes, I see your point."

"Mutation is part of evolution, and evolution is part of God's will. Calling us accidents makes it sound like we're not part of God's will, and that's just …"

"Do me a favor," Logan cut in, "don't bring God into this."

Terra seemed a bit surprised. "Why not?"

"I just don't want to get into a serious religious debate with you right now. We're having a pleasant conversation, so let's stick with that. Continue with 'blue fuzzy guy'."

Terra looked away for a second and chewed on this. "Why would it be a debate?" she asked finally.

"Let's just say my beliefs are … atypical."

"But do you at least-?"

Logan held up a finger to stop her. "Don't go there. Please. Not right now, anyway. Tell me more about blue fuzzy guy. What did you call him?"

"Kurt."

"No, I knew that. His professional name. You've only said it once."

"Nightcrawler. And, yes, he is a bad-ass. He's like a 175-pound monkey-animal, and he's insanely quick and nimble and agile and fast, and he's a lot stronger than he looks, and he goes 'bamfing' around the room so fast, he can 'bamf' onto you, beat the snot out of you, _whap, whap, whap_, and then 'bamf' away before you can react."

"Wait, what is 'bamf'?"

She laughed. "The sound he makes when he teleports. That what we all call it. Kurt can 'bamf'."

"Wait. Blue fuzzy monkey guy can _teleport?_ What's with that?"

Terra laughed again. "I guess I hadn't mentioned that yet. That's his mutant power, he can teleport."

"I thought his only mutation was being blue fuzzy monkey guy."

"No, that's The Beast."

"No, I'm The Beast," he corrected.

"No, my Beast."

"I want to be your Beast."

"No, you're my B.B."

"That's beside the point," he said with a growing smile. "Wait, now I'm confused. Which one's which, again? Kurt is blue fuzzy guy number one, a.k.a. Nightcrawler, who can teleport. Then there's blue fuzzy guy number two, the other Beast, Dr. McCoy."

"See, you're not confused. That's it exactly."

Logan smiled proudly for a moment, then continued, "What else does Beast do, or is he just a blue fuzzy guy?"

"He's a super mega-genius. I mean, so much so that it ought to count as a superpower."

"Cool," Logan said casually, then sat up suddenly and pointed down toward an alley between downtown buildings. "Down there, low," he said seriously. As Terra quickly directed their flying platform toward the direction he indicated, Beast took the form of a wolf, it's ears perked up and focused on the alley.

"What is it, B.B.?" Terra whispered.

Beast growled slightly, then leapt off the sand platform, becoming a falcon in mid-air.

x

As he turned the corner into the alley, he saw what he expected to find, four street gang punks harassing two college girls. Four low-threat opponents were a perfect job for the mugarra, an alien animal he had learned a couple of years ago on one his trips away from the Earth with The Titans. More like a gorilla than anything else, the mugarra had four large, strong arms, plus two legs and a long, thick tail. It stood erect more successfully than an Earthly gorilla, and standing fully upright it was close to 10 feet tall. Beast had taken the form of a small, nondescript bird to assess the situation, and now morphed into a housefly to sneak up even closer.

The girls had their backs to one wall, with the four gang punks forming a semi-circle around them. One of the badguys was holding a girl by the shirt, leaning in close, saying, "I'm gonna kill you, bitch," or something like it, the usual tough-guy line, and the other three were standing two or three feet back, blocking the girls' escape. This was plenty of room for the fly to slip in and hover between the girls and the badguys. The one talking finished his little tough-guy speech and released the girl, shoving her back into the wall as he took a step back to address the other punks. This was Beast's cue. He morphed human, his back to the girls, and faced the four punks.

"Boo," he said casually, as the all jumped back in shock.

"_Jesus!!_" came from several of them at once as they backed away. Before they could react, Beast was a four-armed mugarra. He grabbed all four of them by their shirts at once and hurled them into the far wall. As they collapsed in a heap, Beast went human again, turning to the girls behind him.

"Get down, stay back," he told them calmly. "You're OK now, I've got this." They just nodded, huddled against each other fearfully, as Beast turned his attention back to the badguys, who were struggling to their feet. One of them reached into his jacket pocket as he got his feet under him, apparently going for a gun. Before Beast could react, a basketball-sized clump of sand hit him in the side of the head, hard. As he went flying off his feet again, Beast gave a brief glance to Terra, who was standing on her sand platform, smiling.

Another one to Beast's other side also started to pull a gun, and he remained human and rushed into him, quickly performing one of his favorite, well-practiced martial arts gun-takeaway techniques that Robin had taught him. It ended with the gun going flying away from them and the punk flipping head over heels in the air and coming down on his skull.

Before he had finished collapsing, Beast was an African mandrill, one of the largest species of monkey in the world, leaping into the face of the next one. The 120-pound monkey tackled into him, tripping him into the back wall, where he cracked the back of his head on the wall as he went down. Beast leapt off of the one as a mandrill and landed on the one he had just flipped as a lion. Carefully keeping his claws fully retracted, he boxed the guy's head around with his forepaws a few times, just to stun him. He looked up to see the fourth gang punk running away, and the lion leapt off of the dazed punk, landing in mid-stride as a timber wolf, which easily overtook the fleeing badguy. He tackled him to the ground as a black bear, then was a gorilla as he picked him up and threw him into the wall.

Beast went human as he quickly reassessed the situation. All four badguys were on the ground. Two were making feeble attempts to get up, while the other two seemed content to just lie there. Two guns had been drawn, and Beast quickly scanned the ground for them, but saw only one. He quickly checked again that none of them had it, then went to pick up the one he could see. He was beaten to it by an amorphous humanoid hand made of sand, which picked up the gun and floated it back over to Terra, who stood with the other gun already in her hand.

"Got it covered, B.B.," she said casually.

He gave her a quick smile, then turned to the two young college girls, who were in each other's arms, wide-eyed and shaking.

"It's OK now, it's over. You're OK," he said reassuringly. He turned quickly to Terra, called out, "Terra, turn out the thugs," then turned back to the girls. "My name's Beast, I'm a superhero. I'm going to take care of you now. I'll get you home safely, OK?"

One of them put her hands to her face and started into soft, nervous laughter, and the other suddenly launched herself at Beast, wrapping her arms around him, crying gently. He put a comforting arm around her and looked back to Terra. Her flying platform was now just a loose pile of sand on the ground as she slowly walked among the punks. One of them was on his hands and knees, and Terra put her shoe to the side of his head and kicked him over.

"Who said you could get up?" she snapped, then turned to Beast. "They look clean," she said. "They've got a few knives, but I don't think they could use them."

Beast nodded, then looked to the calmer of the two girls, the one not currently wrapped around him. "What's your name, miss?" he asked, still in his calm and reassuring superhero voice.

"Tiffany," she said softly.

"And this is … ?" he asked, looking down at the one crying on his shoulder.

"Brandy."

"Tiffany, can you take care of Brandy for a minute?" he asked, gently handing her off from his arms into hers. As he got out of the crying girl's arms, he took a step back and reached into his utility belt for the one piece of equipment he used more than anything else, his cell phone. As he speed-dialed the 911 operator, he glanced to Terra.

"Good hit," he said with a smile, mimicking being hit in the side of the head. As Terra smiled and said 'thank you,' Beast heard, "911. What is the nature of your emergency?"

"Code Baker-9-7-4-2. This is The Beast. I need a pickup."

There was a short pause as the operator confirmed his ID code, then she replied, "Roger that, Beast. Give your location."

Beast quickly relayed his location and a brief description of what had happened, mainly that he had four suspects needing to be arrested, then ended the call.

"SFPD is on its way," he announced to everyone, then turned to the girls. "Girls, Tiffany," he said, looking her in the eye. "These guys won't stay in jail unless you press assault charges. The officers can help you with everything you need to do …"

"Oh, don't worry," Tiffany replied. "I'll press charges."

Brandy had, by this time, pulled herself together a bit, and walked from Tiffany's side to face Beast. "Thank you," she said sincerely. "What's your name, again?"

"Beast."

Brandy giggled slightly. "I like that. 'Cause of the gorilla and the monkey and the lion. That's good. Thank you, Beast." She leaned in and kissed him on the cheek, and again said, "Thank you."

Beast gave her a warm smile and patted her shoulder. "Just doing my job, little lady," he replied.

"Hey, I think I know you," Tiffany said as the police sirens turned on down the block. "You're a student at the University, right?"

"Yes."

"My friend had a class with you. Do you know Rachael Dawson?"

Beast shook his head. "Not offhand."

Tiffany started to reply, but SFPD squad cars arrived at the end of the alley.

"Excuse me," Beast said politely. "Duty calls."

x

It only ended up taking about ten minutes to talk to the police. Like most police forces around the country, they had a measure of respect for superheroes and what they do, and generally appreciated Beast's help. He just had to give his statement for the official report, everything he had done and seen starting with hearing them down the alley and ending with calling 911. He had to introduce Terra and explain that she's a visiting superhero. Meanwhile, other officers were taking the girls' statements, while others were cuffing and securing the suspects. Eventually, the scene cleared out, two squad cars hauling away the badguys and a taxi arriving to take the girls home. Tiffany put Brandy in the cab then turned and ran back to Beast.

"I was gonna ask you …" she started. "What's your name?"

"The Beast."

"No, I know. Your real name. It's not a secret, is it? I know a lot of heroes have a secret identity, but you're not … I mean …"

"It's Logan. Why do you ask?"

Tiffany just flashed a little self-conscious smile and giggled, starting slowly back toward the cab. "I'll see you around campus, Logan," she said, pointing back to him, then gestured to the crime scene in general, adding, "And thank you … for everything. Thank you."

"You're welcome," Beast said softly as she disappeared into the cab and pulled away.

"She wants you," Terra said playfully as she walked up next to him.

Beast just laughed. "Yeah, I get that a lot," he replied in the same playful tone. "Come on, let's get out of here."

As they walked toward the patch of beach sand on the ground, it rose into a hovering platform, and they climbed aboard, sat down and got comfortable as they sailed away into the sky.

x

"Sorry if I hogged all the action back there, Terra," Beast started. "I would have let you play a little, but he drew a gun, and …"

"No, it's fine, B.B. You did the right thing. I had really just wanted an opportunity to watch you work, anyway. I can beat up street punks for myself at home."

"When do I get to 'watch you work,' then?" he asked.

Terra laughed and gestured out across the city. "Find me some more badguys, B.B., and I'll whoop 'em for you!"

They both laughed, then fell silent for a moment. Terra continued, "Seriously, though, you looked good back there, B.B. You're even faster with the morphs than I remembered. It was hard to follow, monkey then lion then … what was it? Lion, then wolf then bear then gorilla? Is that right? It was all so … _bam, bam, bam,_" she said, quickly snapping her fingers. "And you took down the first guy as a human, before you went monkey on the next guy. Took him down with a judo flip that I'm sure Robin taught you. That was cool."

Beast nodded and grinned to himself. "Jujitsu flip. Robin taught me a lot. He taught me the value of the human body." He paused, and shook his head. "No, wait, that sounded gay. I meant …"

Terra burst out laughing, and he quickly continued, "I mean Rob taught me how to use the human body as a weapon. See, since I was a kid, I'd always considered my human form to be a 'non-combat' form. If I needed to fight I'd be a gorilla, or a bear, or whatever, just not a human, because my human form was small and weak. But then, two things happened. Puberty finally kicked in around 16 and 17, and I got some reasonable height, got some shoulders, got a little muscle. Then, what really did it for me was when some nutcase tried to capture all of us, and he'd designed counter-measures for each of us, and used anti-magic on Ray and an EMP on Cyborg, and he got me trapped inside a mutant inhibitor field so I couldn't morph, and that was it. That was it for Beast Boy, I was out of the fight. Stuck as a human, I was nothing. Robin, of course, saved our collective asses and kicked this guy's butt for us, and I finally thought, 'that's it, I've got to learn to fight like Robin,' and started bugging him to teach me."

"And now you're jujitsu flipping the badguy before you turn into a lion on him," Terra said with pride. "That's really cool, B.B."

"My human form is a good weapon to have in my arsenal now. It's a form I can use. I've kept it as healthy and strong as I can, and Robin taught me how to use it effectively. And there are times when it's just the most appropriate tool for the job. Especially like just now, when someone pulls a gun. What you really want are good, dexterous hands to grab and control the gun, and nothing else has hands like a human."

"Guess that's true," Terra muttered softly.

"What about you, Terra?" he asked.

"What about me?" she replied, not understanding what he meant.

"Any combat training? Of the non-mutant-powered variety, I mean."

"Not really my style," she said casually. "There are martial arts classes at the Institute, but I haven't taken them."

"Why not?"

She just shrugged. "Not my thing. I'm happy to be a mutant, and don't feel the need to learn to fight as though I wasn't."

"What if you lose your power?" he pressed. "Have you ever felt the effect of a mutant inhibitor field?"

Terra stopped to think for a moment and her face grew serious. "I wore a collar once," she said softly.

Logan closed his eyes sadly as he remembered the day she meant. He didn't know what to say. "I'm sorry, I didn't …" he started.

"No, but anyway," she started, clearly ready to change the subject. "Anyway, I was talking earlier about how fast you are with your morphs. What was that four-armed thing you opened the fight with? I only saw it for like two seconds. Was that an alien?"

"It's called a mugarra, and yes, it's alien. It's from a planet … called … Bargos, I think? Several of them jumped us in the jungle and started wailing on us, and I mimicked their alpha male. I really like the form. It's great for grappling."

"Yeah, I can see that. Four arms, and all," she commented.

"And it's got good, functional hands, too. Better than most Earthly primates." He paused and looked around him for a moment. "Where are we going?"

"Back by the beach to drop off all this sand, then I thought we'd call it a night and head home. It's getting kind of late."

Logan looked at his watch. "It's not even midnight yet."

"I know, but …" Terra paused as an amusing thought came to her. "You know, maybe I'm jetlagged from having traveled here from another dimension earlier this evening."

Logan pondered this for a long moment. "Well," he started finally. "What time was it when you left the X people?"

Terra laughed. " I think it's funny that you call them 'X people.' No, you're right, though. That can't be it. It was 6:45 PM at the mansion, then David and I teleported, and it was still 6:45 in San Francisco. We appeared in the middle of campus and took a cab to the restaurant, where I believe I was right on time. So I'm not jetlagged from that."

"Why not teleport you to the restaurant? Why take a cab?"

"I asked him that. He said he could do that if it was necessary, but that it's a lot easier for him to appear at the same place every time. He calls them anchors. His anchor in my world is the middle of the front lawn of the mansion."

"Yeah!" Logan suddenly called out. "I remember that! The day that I went with you, seven years ago, that's where we appeared." He thought for a second. "But then we left again from Professor X's office."

"I don't think it matters where he leaves from, I think it's only important where he arrives. I don't know, this is how you navigate a six-dimensional wormhole. He explained it to Kitty and me, but I didn't follow it. But then, Kitty's a genius. Anyway …" she paused and gestured around them. They had come to rest hovering low above the beach. "This is the part where we lose the comfy sand pillow."

"Right, then," Logan replied, hopping up on to his hands and feet. "Race ya home?" he asked playfully.

"I'm not sure where home is from here."

"Well, then, try to keep up."

He turned to jump off the sand platform, but Terra put a hand on his shoulder to stop him. "Actually," she said, "I'd like to try again with one of the carrying techniques we use. Some of us X-Men can fly and some can't, so we've worked out a couple of different grips for carrying someone."

Logan gave her an amused grin. "Is this important to you, that you carry me?"

"Well, it's just that Kitty and Peter and Bobby never bitch and I carry them all the time."

"Sure, tactically. You carry them in combat, right?"

"Right," she agreed.

"And I said before, if it was tactically necessary I wouldn't bitch."

"You'd just rather not do it if you don't need to. Is that it?"

Logan just gave an apologetic shrug.

Terra laughed and shook her head. "If you'd really rather fly back your place, fine. I'll race you." She suddenly shouted, "Go!" as she released her telekinetic grip on the sand. Logan found himself suddenly sitting on nothing, falling over backward very quickly. He only dropped a few feet before he got some wind under his wings as a raven. He pulled up and out, forming into a wide circle around Terra, who hovered in mid-air, laughing hysterically.

"Oh, God, B.B., you shoulda seen your face!" she cried out. "It was priceless!"

Beast responded the only way he could at the moment, by leaving her in his dust. He became an Asian spine-tailed swift, the world's fastest bird, and took off to the south, accelerating to just over 100 mph. Every time he thought he had successfully left her in his dust, he'd look back and there she'd be, right on his tail. He got a little altitude, and went into a peregrine falcon power dive, which can max out at more than 200 mph, but as he pulled out of his dive he spotted her, still right on his tail.

He lost so much altitude in the dive, he decided to drop even lower and dart between buildings, trying to lose her. Approaching an intersection as an Asian swift, he suddenly extended the five-foot wingspan of a hawk. This airbrake maneuver allowed him a very hard turn down the side street as Terra shot past him. By then, Beast was a falcon again, since it had better low-end acceleration, speeding away in the other direction. He successfully lost her for almost ten seconds, then she reappeared, closing in on his tail.

By that time he was making the final approach toward his complex. He shot toward it at swift speed, did another hawk airbrake as he went over it, and came around as a raven for the final approach to the second story stairwell landing. He was a hummingbird as he cleared the railing and hovered in the landing outside his apartment door, with Terra coming in right beside him. He went human right as she set down, and she threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly.

"Oh, B.B., that was so much fun!" she squealed.

He just laughed and held her for a moment, then they pulled back to face each other, still in each other's arms.

"You're really good in the air, B.B. You know that?" she said with pride. "With all the different kinds of birds … I'll bet some are fast birds and some have a good turning radius, and some are better divers or climbers …"

"Yeah, that's it exactly," he replied. "What about you, though? You are equally as at home in the air as Raven or Starfire, and that's saying something."

She smiled and blushed. "Aw, B.B., that's sweet."

They stood in silence for a moment, smiling at each other, his hands still on her shoulders, hers still on his ribs, staring into each other's eyes. They slowly moved closer, and closer, until their lips were inches apart, then hovered there for a long moment. Terra suddenly shot him a smile, then a small giggle, as she slowly backed away.

"You know what, B.B.?" she started softly, still giggling slightly. "I think I need a shower, and maybe a midnight snack first."

Logan laughed and nodded. "I understand. Come on," he said as he went to unlock the apartment. He walked in, turned on the light, and gestured through the bedroom, toward the bathroom. "Ladies first."

"Oh, no, really, you go ahead."

"No, I-"

"No, really, B.B.," she insisted. "I want to wash my hair, and that'll take a while, and I know you, you're a guy, you'll be in and out in like ten seconds."

"OK," he conceded. "I'll be quick."

"Besides," she added playfully as he walked away. "You kinda need it more than I do."

He turned back at stared at her with mock resentment. "Yes, I do. You know why? Because I was out there working my ass off," he said, flapping his arms like wings. "And then you," he pointed at her accusingly, "You're whole deal is psychokinetic, so there's no real … exertion. That's why you didn't even break a sweat."

"No exertion? Are you kidding?" she cried. "It's just a different kind. It's a mental exertion. I was working my ass off out there, too."

"Whatever. It's not the same thing."

"Whatever yourself, mister," she said with a playfully dismissive wave of her hand. "Go. Go on, bird boy, you're stinky."

Logan laughed again, then replied, "Just be a minute," and disappeared into the bedroom. A second later, he turned to poke his head out again. "Terra," he said more seriously. "If you'd known the way home, you'd have beaten me here."

She just nodded. "Yeah."

Her modesty made him laugh again, and he just replied with, "Right," as he slipped back in and shut the door. Getting out of his armored costume and putting it away took longer than anything else. He got a quick shower, brushed his teeth, got into some jeans and a clean tee shirt, and was good to go. He re-emerged from the bedroom to find Terra sitting at the computer, munching on a bag of chips and staring at the screensaver of old photos.

"Oh, that was quick," she said as she got up. He went to her side by the computer, and she gestured at the screen after shoving a last handful of chips in her mouth.

"I want …" she started with her mouth full, then paused to chew for a moment. "I want you…" she said again, with fewer chips in her mouth, "to open some of these files for me, so I can freeze on it and zoom in and stuff. And I'd like prints of a few of them."

"No problem," he replied as he started to sit down at the computer.

"Not right now, though, I'm going to clean up first," she said, grabbing one last handful of chips before she headed for the bedroom.

x

Some time later, Logan was at the table reviewing his Micro, when Terra came out, still brushing her hair. She was in an oversized pink tee shirt that nearly reached her knees, which had a large teddy bear on the chest, and she had bare legs and feet. Logan tried not to check her out too obviously, but she apparently caught it.

"What? I am wearing pants, OK?" she said, raising her shirt to reveal a pair of blue cotton running shorts.

Logan just smiled and shook his head. She crossed the room to him, looked over his shoulder at his homework, and began brushing his hair with her wet brush. "Whatcha doin'?" she asked in a child-like manner.

"Homework. This is Microbiology, and it's pissing me off."

"Why's that? I'd think biology would be an easy one for you. 'You study animals,' and all."

"This is Micro. I'm studying protozoa and bacteria and amoeba, and all these other really cool things that I can't become. It's frustrating."

This threw Terra for a second. "Why can't …? I thought you could do the microscopic thing."

"It's not about scale, it's about species. They're not animals."

"What aren't?"

"Protozoa and bacteria are not animals, they're protozoa and bacteria. And I can't mimic them. I've been trying, but I can only do animals."

"I can see where that would be frustrating."

"Fortunately for me, though, there are the myxozoa."

"The who?"

"The myxozoa are a group of microscopic, single-celled, parasitic animals. I tracked some down, had them imported to our bio-lab, and I have successfully mimicked one."

"Really? Cool," she replied. "What's it like being microscopic?"

"Um …" he started, not sure what to say. "Blind and deaf, but with the most bizarre sort of super-acute smell and taste."

"Weird."

"Yes, very. So I've gone up to a bacteria and 'smelled' him chemically, but I can't mimic him. It's highly frustrating."

"Yes, poor baby," she said as she continued to brush his hair.

"Why are you doing that?" he asked after a moment.

"If you're going to wear your hair this long, you have to take care of it and brush it."

"I knew it," Logan snapped at himself. "I knew I should have gotten a haircut."

"No, you don't need it cut, necessarily, it just needs to be taken care of. I noticed, for example, you don't have a decent conditioner in your shower. I mean, you've got the 2-in-1, but that's …"

She stopped when Logan started laughing again. "I think I'd rather just cut it again," he said.

After a moment of just brushing his hair, she replied, "I could cut it."

"You could?"

"Sure. I cut Kitty's hair, and I've done Bobby's and Peter's before. I could make you look super-sharp," she said, running her fingers through his hair.

"Just don't give me the hair I had when I was fifteen."

Terra just laughed. "Maybe tomorrow. Right now, make me a sandwich."

Logan turned in his chair and looked up at her. "Midnight snack, huh?" he said, then rose to his feet. "Let's see what I got." As he opened the refrigerator, he made a mental list of the food still in his apartment. "I have cereal and milk, I have leftover Chinese noodles, I have bread for a peanut butter sandwich, I have … Ooh!" he reached into the fridge excitedly and pulled out what appeared to be a package of bacon. "Tofu bacon! It's great for BLT's. You want one?"

Terra just shook her head. "B.B. and his tofu. You're so funny."

"What? I'm just …"

"No, I think it's great. I think it's really cute. I'll have a PB&J, if you please."

"Grape or black cherry?"

"Ooh, black cherry sounds good. And a glass of milk, if you've got it."

"Coming right up," he said as he tossed the tofu bacon in the microwave for himself. As Logan made their sandwiches, Terra sat down at the computer and began working.

"So I found an image editor," she started, "and your photo library, and took a closer look at some of these. I definitely want copies of a few of these, especially this one of the two of us."

He looked over her shoulder at the picture she meant. "I like that one, too," he said. "The big one of you on my wall is a crop out of that one."

"Oh, yeah," she said as she recognized it. "Oh, that is a good one of me, too, I guess. I'd liked it because it was a good one of you."

By the time his tofu bacon was hot, Logan had Terra's peanut butter and jelly ready to go. He set their meals on the table and asked which other photos she liked. Mainly, she had questions about all of the honorary Titans. She now knew Kid Flash and Nightwing, but didn't recognize Speedy, AquaLad, Argent, Bushido, Hot Spot, or any of the others.

After that, she pulled up a pair of pictures of Beast caught in the act of morphing. In one, his head and one arm were extremely tiger-like while the rest of him was still human, and in the other his entire body was, in both size and shape, somewhere between a human and a T-Rex.

"Where did these come from?" she asked. "Did Cyborg take these?"

"Cyborg edited those out of a recorded video, and I don't like them."

"Oh, so he had to rewind to the time you morphed, and freeze on the right frame, and all that."

"I'll have you know I take an average of 0.35 seconds to change my form. Less if it's not a very big size change."

"You don't have to tell me, B.B.," she replied. "I've always been impressed with how … instantaneous, you're morphing is. It seems to defy the laws of physics, you know?"

"I know, but you see …" he said with false seriousness. "I never studied law."

Terra laughed at the old and tired Bugs Bunny joke, then replied, "No, but seriously, did you say you don't like them? Why?"

Logan shook his head. "Vic had to dig for them, you understand. He's got lots of video of me morphing, but they're all unusable because I'm too fast, and there's not a usable frame that can catch it. So he eventually dug up these, and no, I don't like them."

"Why?" she repeated.

"It's like …" he started, then paused to consider his words. "It's like getting caught with your pants down, you know? I'm in the middle of changing, and I don't have … a form, at all. I'm in between forms. It's like I got caught unprepared, or something."

"B.B., you're unprepared for … what'd you say? … 0.35 seconds. I wouldn't worry about it."

"Yeah, but Vic took pictures of it," he said, pointing at the screen.

"Well, if you dislike them so much, why are they on your screensaver?"

This caused Logan to pause. "Well, they're interesting. They're a conversation starter. I let that screensaver run at parties, and people always comment on those. What else have you got?"

Terra clicked the mouse and a different picture came up, a dramatic group shot of the five of them. It featured, left to right, Raven, hood up and cloak billowing, Beast Boy in a dramatic action pose, Cyborg towering above the others menacingly, Robin, chest out and cape billowing, and Starfire, who was airborne, hovering three feet off the ground.

"Yeah, I like that one," Logan said with a laugh. "I call that file 'family portrait.' It's one of my favorites."

"Definitely need a copy of that one. I guess that's it for now. I'm sure I'll want some others later," she said as she started to stand up. "Thanks for the sandwich."

"No problem," he replied. As Logan took their dishes to the kitchen, Terra sat down on the couch and started looking through his collection of remotes. "What're you looking for?" he asked as he came to join her.

"Music," she replied as she eyed a remote control suspiciously. "What does this do?" she asked.

"Music is best through my computer," he replied as he headed back that way. "Put all those back. I've got it over here, and it's wired into the good speakers over there. Just a sec …" As he spoke, he quickly set his sound system to start a Pink Floyd album, then returned and sat next to her on the couch. She quickly slid up against him and curled into his shoulder, pulling her feet up onto the couch.

"This has been such a wonderful day," she said dreamily. "I'm just so happy."

"I know exactly what you mean," he replied blissfully, then turned and kissed the top of her head. She looked up to face him, and their noses were only inches apart. They hesitated for only a moment, then gently touched lips and slowly began to kiss. He took her in his arms and gently moved her back down onto the couch, and they continued to kiss passionately for some time. Eventually, as Logan's hand moved up her leg and under her shirt, Terra put a hand on his to stop him.

"B.B., … before we get … too far into this …" she started, still kissing him, then finally pulled back a bit. "Much as I'd like to rip your clothes off right now, I think we should take this a little slower than all that … I mean, it's not that I don't …"

"Of course, Terra," he replied gently. "This is our first date. I wouldn't expect you to … I mean, I didn't expect to get off the couch."

She shot him a look. "What did you expect?"

"I should say, I hoped … for a good kiss. And that's really all I was hoping for tonight. We don't have to … I mean, whatever you want to do …"

She leaned in and kissed him again, gently, then started to her feet. "Good night, B.B.," she said with a warm smile. He rose with her, and she wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tightly. "I will see you bright and early," she said, "and you can take me to your favorite breakfast spot."

"Sounds good," he agreed as he held her. They released their long embrace, kissed again, then Terra started toward the bedroom door. Before she got there, he said, "Hey, Terra. Didn't you say David gave you like 500 dollars?"

She smiled. "A grand, actually. Why?"

He gave her a big, enthusiastic smile and pointed at her emphatically. "I know where we're going to breakfast!" he said. "And you're buying!"

Terra giggled excitedly. "Sounds like fun. Good night, B.B."

x

As Logan went about laying out the sheet and blanket on the couch, he began to mutter to himself. "Well, Mitch would say I just blew it, but I don't know. This isn't a 'score,' this is the love of my life." He stripped out of his tee shirt and jeans and into some black and green striped pajama pants, then killed the light, still muttering to himself about how he ought to be in there with her, but that it's OK that he's not, and that things are going well, but still … Eventually his mind settled down and he tried to sleep.

About ten minutes after the bedroom door had closed, it opened again. "B.B.?" Terra called out softly into the darkened room.

Logan sat up on the couch. "What is it, sweetie?" he replied.

"B.B., can you come here?"

He tossed off his covers and went to the bedroom door, where Terra stood in the doorway. "What is it?" he asked again.

"Well …" she started. She put her hands on his shoulders, then slowly ran them down across his bare chest and stomach. She then wrapped her arms around him and kissed him. "You know…" she started, between kisses, "what I was saying … about wanting to wait?"

"Yeah?"

She paused and looked him in the eye playfully. "Fuck it," she said, then pulled him through the doorway, kissing him again as she shut the door.


	6. SIX: Saturday

SIX

(Saturday)

The next morning, Logan awoke suddenly to find Terra hopping on her knees on the mattress next to him, violently shaking the bed.

"Wakey, wakey, sleepyhead!" she cried playfully.

"Christ, Terra!" he exclaimed as he grabbed another pillow, popped her with it, then pulled it on top of his head.

Terra mercifully stopped bouncing, saying, "See, that worked. I tried some more subtle methods of getting you up, B.B., but they weren't working. You're a very sound sleeper."

Logan glanced at his watch. "Of course I was sound asleep, Terra," he groaned. "It's barely nine in the morning."

"Well, I get up every morning at eight, so I don't know what your problem is. What's for breakfast?" she asked excitedly. "You wanted to go somewhere expensive, right?"

"Right, right, give me a minute," he muttered as he dragged himself out of bed. He realized he was still nude, decided he didn't care, and staggered into the shower. He emerged in his towel to find Terra puzzling over all her clothes, which were spread out across the bed. She was still wearing the oversized, pink teddy bear tee shirt, and, Logan knew, nothing else.

"What should I wear?" she asked. "How fancy is this expensive place?"

"Not too fancy. I'd say slightly fancier than just a tee shirt."

"What are you wearing, then?"

Logan dropped the towel and quickly pulled on his blue jeans and a clean white dress shirt, which went un-tucked and without a tie. As he pulled on his ubiquitous black leather cycle boots, Terra decided on her outfit, a black sleeveless blouse, Capri-cut jeans, and flip-flops.

"What's this?" he asked, holding up a thin canvas belt heavily studded with small, smooth stones.

"Oh, thanks. I hate when I forget that," she said as she took it from him and attached it around her waist, just under her jeans.

"What is it?" he asked again.

"It's my emergency stash. This belt can serve as a flight harness if necessary, plus I've always got some ammo on me. I'm rarely ever without it."

"You were without it last night," he said.

"Wasn't. It was under my mini-skirt all night."

Logan looked confused, and had to think about this.

"Remember?" she started again, "We didn't start any funny stuff until after I had changed into and back out of my real flight suit."

"Right, right. That's a good idea. Always be prepared," he replied.

"A superhero is never off duty, and all that," Terra said earnestly, still with a smile.

"Anyway, you'll want that light jacket I put in the closet, too," he suggested as they prepared to leave. "And, by the way … you look amazing. You are so beautiful."

She gave him a dismissive wave. "Aw, B.B., that's so sweet."

"I like all the … the silver," he commented, gesturing to her necklace, bracelet, anklet, and toe ring that she had worn the night before.

"Thanks. I don't really wear much jewelry, so this is about all I have."

"I like it. Especially the toe ring. That's just sexy."

Terra gave a surprised little laugh. "Glad you like it."

He handed her her jacket and pulled on his own, and they walked out to his bike.

x

They arrived at Eddie's, an upscale restaurant, at 9:40, to find that brunch didn't start until 10:30, so they rode to a nearby park and sat under the trees for a while, talking easily together. They reminisced about their adventures together years ago, and she told him more about her friends at the Institute. She described Peter, a.k.a. Colossus, who could transform into organic steel, and Bobby, a.k.a. Iceman, who could generate intense cold, as well as freeze moisture out of the air and form shapes in ice.

The conversation paused for the brief bike ride back to Eddie's, then resumed naturally as they sat down to brunch. Eventually, one of them made a comment about a current geo-political situation, and the other wasn't familiar with it. This drove home the point that they lived on different planets now, and this turned the conversation to David.

"I owe him a huge debt of gratitude, yet I barely know him." Terra started. "Do you know the man at all?"

"No. He hung out at the Tower for about a week, seven … no, eight years ago. Mostly hung out with Raven, but we all had lunch or dinner together a few times. Then I saw him again for a few hours that day you met him, then for about ten minutes Thursday afternoon. That's it." He stopped and thought about it for a second. "No," he continued. "Don't really know the man at all. You?"

Terra shook her head. "A few hours seven years ago, then less than a day at the mansion, then he dropped me off here. I feel like … like he's been little more than a taxi driver to me, and I feel like I should know him better, at least, after all that he's done for me."

"I understand what you mean," he replied.

"I mean, he doesn't know us, either," she continued. "Why is he doing all this, why is he helping me like this?"

"I think it's mostly a favor to Raven," he replied seriously.

This stumped Terra, and it took her several seconds to respond. "But … she was against all of this. She wanted me to go to prison. Why would …? I mean …"

"It's like this. Raven, as a favor to me because I asked for her help, in turn asked for a favor from her old friend David, and he showed up and found you a good home, basically because Raven asked him to. That's how I understand it, anyway."

"What about now, ferrying me around like this?"

"I would guess he feels responsible for our having been separated to begin with, so he feels he should do what he can to help out now."

"I wonder what he's doing?" Terra muttered as she dug into her purse, producing a cell phone.

Logan looked at it in surprise. "Does that make inter-dimensional phone calls?" he asked.

"No, silly, it's just a normal phone. It's for while we're both here, so I can get a hold of him. He said he was spending the weekend back in New York, but wasn't specific about what he'd be doing."

"Raven, if all goes well," he muttered to himself with a smile.

"Hmm? Yeah, he probably would be with Raven. I'll bet they're practicing magic together, or something. I'm gonna call him."

She held the phone to her ear and paused for a moment. "David? Hi, how are you? … No, everything's great, B.B. and I are having lunch." She paused, listening for a second, then laughed. "Yes, he lets me call him B.B.," she said with a smile. "None of this 'Logan' stuff. So what are you doing?" After a long pause, "Tell her I said, well, just tell her I said 'hi.'… No, so I was wondering if you'd want to come over here for a bit. Maybe the three of us could have dinner later or something?" Another long pause, and then, "Well, maybe later. Call me, or I'll call you, or something. I'll let you get back to your … OK, have fun. Bye."

She put away the phone and turned back to Logan. "He's at the Tower, in the sparring room with Raven. He said he's teaching her some alien martial arts moves to surprise Robin with. Surprise Nightwing with, sorry. David said 'Nightwing' and I knew who he meant, then I said 'Robin.' Weird, huh?"

Logan shook his head. "Not surprising. You're having a problem with us changing our names. I can tell."

"It's not a problem, really …"

"You just refuse to call me Logan. I don't understand it, since all your X people friends have two names."

"Yeah, but that's different. They've had two names as long as I've known them, and they use both interchangeably."

"Just like I'm either Logan or Beast."

"Exact- … No, you're _B.B.!"_ she exclaimed.

He just laughed. A moment later, he added, "I am your B.B. It's true."

"Thank you. So, how does David know Raven, again?"

Logan thought about telling her of David's plans for Raven, but decided he didn't want to jinx David by talking about it. "She's the reason he came to us in the first place. That week he spent with us eight years ago, he mostly spent with Raven."

"But, I mean, how'd they meet?"

"Well, they're both powerful magic users. David had heard of Raven, the superhero sorceress, and wanted to meet her and perhaps learn from her. Maybe even teach her something, as well. So he tracked her down and showed up at our door one day. They immediately liked each other, 'kindred magic users,' or something, and he hung out at the Tower for a while. This is what Ray told me about him years ago."

"And did she learn lots of cool stuff from him?"

"Not really. As I recall, Ray said their approaches to magic were so fundamentally different that they really had nothing to offer each other, but she said it was still fascinating to study his technique."

"What kind of magic does he do?" Terra asked. "Besides teleportation between realities, I mean. That's all I've seen."

Logan's face lit up as a memory came back to him. "That's right!" he said excitedly. "David didn't show up at our door, he showed up on a mission. Sorry, this was eight years ago, I'd forgotten how this all got started. We were out fighting some loony's army of robots. All five of us were surrounded by an army of battledroids, and … I wouldn't say we were getting our ass kicked, or anything, but it was a tough fight. Then, out of nowhere, this random guy walks up and starts flattening droids with energy blasts from his hands. Says we looked like we could use a little backup. So he proceeds to lay waste to this army of droids while all of us just basically sit back and watch."

"Really? Wow …" Terra said, surprised and impressed.

"Afterward, he politely introduced himself and asked Raven if he could join her for a while. So she invited him back to the Tower, and they ended up hanging out for about a week before he finally moved on. I didn't really get to know him that well."

"Lay waste to an army of battledroids?" she repeated in disbelief. "But he seems like such a peaceful kind of guy."

"Yeah, he does," Logan agreed, nodding. "But I'm telling you, he can throw down the hurt on somebody when necessary."

Terra thought for a second. "What's his combat ability like? Does he fight like Raven?"

This time Logan had to think for a second. "Well, he can't fly … or I should say, he doesn't fly, don't know if he can or not, … He shoots energy blasts that are really more like Starfire's than Raven's. They're bright green, and freakin' strong, about like Cyborg's hand-cannon. And he does the … like Raven does … dammit, what do you call it? … 'energetic solids.' Shaped force fields, like what Raven and Green Lantern both do. Actually a lot like The Lantern, since David's are also green. Telekinesis, again like Raven does. Oh, I remember, he turned a group of the little droids to stone."

"Turned them to stone?"

Logan nodded. "Yep, petrified them. Like eight of them, the smaller, human-sized droids. Just waved his hand at them, and, 'pow!' … stone statues."

"Really? Wow …" Terra said again.

"'Wow' is right," he replied. "I can't believe I'd forgotten that we meet him at a fight. The man's a certifiable bad-ass."

"Well, now I really want to get to know him better. Remind me later to call him and invite him out with us again."

"Definitely."

x

It was noon when they left the restaurant, and Terra wanted to head home again, but wouldn't say why. Logan obliged her, and upon entering the apartment she ripped his clothes off for another round of vigorous sex, this time on the living room floor. Some time later, as they lay naked on the floor, recovering, Terra turned to Logan. "So, what do you want to do with the rest of the day?" she asked.

"This is working for me, actually," he replied with a smile as he moved toward her again.

"Seriously?" she asked. "OK, works for me, too, then." They made long, slow, passionate love for quite some time, before finally collapsing in a heap in each other's arms. They cuddled like this for a long while, then Logan opened his eyes to see that Terra's were closed, and she had fallen softly to sleep. He closed his eyes again and passed out as well.

x

He awoke to find the sun starting to go down, Terra absent, and himself lying naked on the living room floor. As he pulled on his jeans, he heard her come out of the bathroom. She walked out wearing the oversized pink tee shirt again.

"You know what I was thinking?" Logan started as he reached for his shirt. "Do you like my bike? I mean, do you enjoy riding around on it?"

"Sure. I think it's neat. Do you want to take me for a ride in the country?"

"Actually, there's a poker run tonight."

"What's that?"

Logan explained that this was a fund-raising technique used by bikers, in this case to help pay a biker friend's medical bills for something. His kid, maybe. Players put down an 'ante,' or entry fee, then ride a circuit around town, stopping at five checkpoints around town to pick up a card at each. At the end of the run, the best poker hand gets some percentage of the pot, and the rest goes toward medical bills. It was for a worthy cause, it was a chance to win some money, it was an excuse to ride around town with a bunch of other bikers, and it ended with a party with lots of beer.

"Sounds like fun. Is this worthy cause a friend of yours?" Terra asked.

"I don't know the guy, but that's not the point. It's a community thing."

"How many bikers are going to be there?"

Logan shrugged. "The more the merrier."

"And are these your friends, now?" she asked with a smile. "Does my B.B. hang out with bikers?"

"Well, they're a peer group, sure," he replied, returning her playful smile. "I've got my student friends, who I see the most, then my biker friends, then my superhero friends …"

"I'd like to meet them, too. You said Flamebird was pretty cool."

"Yeah, but she's in L.A. Impulse could be here in no time … Power Girl, too, but I have no way of calling them."

Terra gave a dismissive wave of her hand. "Whatever. Another time, then. Let's do this biker thing." She paused, then asked excitedly, "What should I wear to be a biker chick?"

Logan laughed. "Wear whatever you want. Wear what you wore this morning, that'd be fine. Wear what you wore last night, that'd be awesome."

"What are you wearing?" she asked.

"Probably this," he said, gesturing to the white dress shirt and jeans he was already wearing.

"OK, I'll go get dressed," she said as she started back into the bedroom. Logan buttoned up his shirt as he followed her, entering the room just in time to see her pull off the pink tee shirt. As he had suspected, she had nothing on under it.

"What?" she asked when she caught him staring at her.

Logan shook his head. "I'm just watching you get dressed."

Terra dropped the shirt and stood naked in front of him for a moment, then walked up, put her arms around him, and kissed him. As Logan's hands ran up and down her bare body, she softly whispered, "I love you, B.B.," then gently pulled away and went back to getting dressed.

"I didn't bring much," she explained as she dressed, "so I've got to mix and match." She decided on the pale blue spaghetti-strapped top and the Capri-cut jeans, with flip-flops. And, of course, she didn't forget her stone-studded emergency belt.

"Excellent," Logan declared upon seeing the finished product.

"I wouldn't have thought flip-flops were appropriate motorcycle riding attire, but it worked this morning, and I like them, so …"

"That's just fine for a passenger," Logan agreed. "The rider should probably have shoes, just because you need to shift gears with your foot, if nothing else."

"Right. So, shall we?" she started, gesturing to the door, and they each grabbed their jackets and started off downstairs.

The poker run began and ended at a warehouse owned by one of their many biker friends, who was hosting the event. Easily 50 bikes took off, at intervals, down the street toward the first card. As they rode amidst the herd of Harley's, Logan would turn back to Terra and shout things into her ear. "That's a panhead … that's a knucklehead … those two are Fat Boys …" Terra didn't follow most of it, just something about the engines, but it was clear she was amused by her B.B.'s excitement over it. They picked up a Three of Hearts from a biker who was sitting in a Taco Bell parking lot handing out cards. As they cruised toward their second card, Terra leaned in close to Logan's ear.

"Hey, B.B.! How much was the ante to get into this?"

"Fifty, why?"

"Could I up that?"

"Donations are always appreciated."

"No, it's just that … David gave me all this money, and I'm not gonna spend all this in two days, and I can't take it home with me …"

"If you want to drop a few hundred in the pot, go ahead," he replied. "Oh, see that one," he called out, pointing at another bike. "That's a Honda 750. That's like what I rode back home, before I got this one." The bike was obviously smaller than Logan's, but otherwise very cool, a tough little machine.

"That's still quite a step up from your moped, B.B.," she said with a smile.

"Yes, it was, and let me tell you …" he started with excitement. "I loved that first Beast Bike. Rode the hell out of it. This here," he said, patting his gas tank, "is the Beast Bike 'mark II.' I have the 'mark III' under construction in a garage."

"Really? What's number three like?"

"A custom frame and a state-of-the-art engine, and not much else. Like I said, under construction."

They added to their Three of Hearts a Two of Hearts, a Six of Clubs, and a Six of Diamonds. They agreed that the pair of 6's looked promising. Their fifth card was the Six of Hearts.

"Now, this is the devil's hand, the triple 6's," he explained as they pulled away toward the finish line, where the party and the beer awaited. "In any normal game, I'd ride this hand as far as I could, but when you're up against 50 or 60 other possible hands? I'm out. No way."

"Don't be such a pessimist," she chided, but his comment prompted her to ask about the use of multiple decks, and the possibility of identical hands. He explained that the rules of poker got very precise when it came to comparing powerful hands, and that it all worked out.

x

They arrived at the warehouse where they had started to find a party in progress. More bikes were constantly arriving, greeted by very loud music and a lot of beer. Logan filled two cups off the keg and handed one to Terra, holding his up to toast.

"Per our previous conversation about cheap beer …" he started. "Here's to the times when it's appropriate."

After they drank, she commented, "Yep, cheap beer," then shrugged and downed the cup. As Logan was refilling it, a tall, lean fellow of Native American Indian blood walked up to them.

"Beast, good to see you," he called out over the music.

"Good to see you, Feather," he replied as they shook hands. "Feather, this is Terra," he said, gesturing toward her. Terra said 'hello' and shook his hand, but the man seemed a bit confused.

"Terra, Terra …" he started, then turned to Logan excitedly. "Is this _the_ Terra, as in you've got her picture in your wallet, and you were in love as teenaged kids? That Terra?"

Logan nodded, and Feather turned back to Terra. "Wow, man, it is really cool to meet you," he said enthusiastically. "Beast's told me so much about you."

Terra smiled at this, looking back and forth between them. "I think it's funny that you call him Beast. So, it's not Logan, then?"

Feather shrugged. "He calls me Feather, I call him Beast. It's a respect thing. He knows my name's Mike, but, I mean, how boring is that?" Terra laughed, and he continued, "What do you call him, then?"

"He's my B.B., of course!" she replied with enthusiasm.

"Oh … for Beast Boy, that's right." He turned to Logan. "When you were a kid you were Beast Boy, and that's how she knows you. That's just so damn cute. So, Terra … what are you doing … back? I mean, I thought you couldn't come back. I thought there was some weird trans-dimensional thing going on."

Terra turned to Logan, just slightly puzzled and surprised. "Does he know my whole story, B.B.?" she asked.

He shrugged. "A lot of it, yeah."

Terra slowly got a little bit irritated. "And is this common knowledge around here?"

"No, sweetie, no, it's not like that," Logan began apologetically. "Feather's a good friend, he knows things about me. You were an important part of my past, you know? Besides," He leaned in closer to her ear. "Feather doesn't know about Slade, he only knows about you leaving to live with X people. He accepts that I don't want to talk about why."

"OK," she said, reassured. "OK, that does make me feel better." She looked back to Feather, who was starting to fade into the crowd. "Feather, wait," she called out, "I'm sorry, I didn't …"

"No, I didn't mean to start anything between you …" he replied.

"You didn't," Logan reassured him. "It's all good."

"So, Feather," Terra started, taking the man by one arm, with Logan in the other. "I haven't seen B.B. here in many years, and you're his good friend now. So, tell me about him. Tell me about your friend Beast."

Feather laughed and immediately launched into his favorite story about a practical joke they all pulled on Beast one time. Then he had a story about this time a bunch of 'mutie bashers' came looking for him, aiming to beat the snot out of a mutant. He had trashed all four of them without once ever turning into an animal. The he had a cute story about when Beast first got his new frame built, and was _so_ excited about 'Beast Bike III' and went on and on about what all he was going to get for it. Then he had a story …

x

After many more 'tales of The Beast,' and many more beers, Terra realized she was drunk and hungry, and turned to Logan. "What about you, B.B.?" she asked. "You OK to drive? Or, ride … or whatever."

"Oh sure. I stopped counting your drinks after five, but this is still my third little half-cup, and this is weak, watered down swill, anyway."

"Hey!" Feather cried out, a bit offended.

Logan ignored him. "I'm fine, sweetie. So, you say you're hungry?" he asked.

"You got like a late-night diner around here? That I might get some pancakes."

Logan said goodbye to Feather and a few other friends, then took Terra for a short ride down the street to Joe's Diner. The popular eatery was full of college students, and most of them had been out drinking as well. Terra got an omelette and pancakes, Logan got the jumbo waffle, and they talked casually through dinner, Logan describing some of his other friends she'd met that night but not really talked to. After dinner, they decided it was too noisy and crowded to hang out there, and he took her home.

x

They got back to the apartment, both took off their jackets and shoes, then while Logan was still pulling his boots off, Terra sat down at the computer and again started the slideshow of old pictures.

"You're really fascinated by my screensaver photos, aren't you?" Logan said with a smile.

"You don't understand, B.B.," she said more seriously. "Knowing you guys was such a brief, but such an important, part of my life, and all I've ever had were my memories. And now I've got all these pictures of my memories, and it's kind of … yes, it fascinates me, it really does."

As Logan joined her beside the table, the screen changed to a picture of a sad-looking green dog lying down, wrapped around a heart-shaped jewelry box.

"Oh, my God, B.B.," Terra started softly. "That's the box you made me. I couldn't find it when I left that day."

"You mean the day you left for good? Because that shot's from the day you left, the second time. The time we found out you'd gone over to Slade." Logan couldn't believe he'd just thrown that out there so casually, and turned to check Terra's reaction. She was obviously a little pained.

"Yeah, um, B.B.," she started quietly. "I've been thinking we need to talk about … some things."

"No, we don't, Terra," he said seriously. "If you're not comfortable talking about it, then we don't need to."

"But there's something …" she started, then flashed him a self-conscious little smile. "You know at dinner last night, I said I needed to tell you that I've had a really good life thanks to you, and I made myself cry. Well, there's something else I need to tell you, and please don't worry if I make myself cry again."

"OK," he said softly, kneeling beside her and taking hold of her hands. "Go ahead."

Her eyes darted back to the computer screen, an alligator with its jaws open wide. "Can we turn that off?" she said. "It's distracting."

Logan touched the mouse and the screen returned to its current desktop image, a cute little green doggy sitting in the grass.

"Oh, that's cute," she commented, then shook her head. "No, don't get distracted. Want to tell you …"

"What?"

"You've got a lot of pictures of yourself on there, you know," she said with a grin.

"Mitch took a lot of those for a project on different species, and I liked them. I think I look better in some of those than I do in some of my human pictures."

"Oh, that's just silly," she said dismissively.

"Anyway … what was this about not getting distracted?"

Terra's face grew somber again. "I wanted to tell you … that I understand that what I did was … that I understand why I did it, and it was … I don't know, I don't know how to say this." She paused and looked away, still holding his hands. "I've practiced this speech, but now I can't say it. That it was a mistake. That I gave in to weakness and fear, and that I've grown so much since then."

"I know you have, Terra. You don't have to prove anything to-"

"Do you, B.B.? You haven't seen me in seven years. You haven't seen everything I've-"

"But I see the end result. You're not the girl who despised us and worked for Slade, you're the girl I knew and loved before all that. I see it in your eyes, Terra."

"Yes, but I need you to understand that there's no possible way I could ever go back, because I understand now what happened, and I'm strong enough to control myself now …" About this time, the tears slowly started to form in Terra's eyes.

Logan wiped the first of her tears away and held her face gently in his hands. "Yes, Terra, I know," he said firmly. "I know. It's OK."

She smiled at him and wiped at her own face. "It's just, I know the other Titans are gonna be like, 'well, how can we trust her? She might turn bad again,' and I don't want you to think that. I couldn't handle it if you thought that about me."

"I promise you, I don't," he said softly, then kissed her lips. "I know you better than that. Even back then, I knew that-"

"But see, back then I could have," she interrupted. "That's what I'm trying to tell you. The day it all happened, when I was with you at the Tower, I told you I was trusting you with my life, and I meant it. I let you decide my fate. If you hadn't sent me to live with the Professor, if I'd just been kicked out on the street, or even if I'd gone to prison, the Brotherhood of Evil, or someone like them, would have gotten a hold of me, and I'd be a villain right now. I was weak, and confused, and … I could have gone either way." She paused and squeezed his hands as her tears continued to flow freely. "Don't you see, B.B.?" she whispered. "You saved my soul. I'd be evil and damned if you hadn't shown me the path."

Logan thought he might be about to tear up as well, then suddenly gave a small laugh. "Wow," he said. "You've given this some thought, haven't you? And I thought just saving your life in the cave-in was pretty cool."

She gave a small laugh as well, then just sat and smiled at him, the tears coming to a stop. "But with the Professor's help," she started again, "and with help from all of my friends, I've gotten past all that. I'm not weak anymore, or confused."

"I know, Terra, I can tell," he said again.

She gave another small, relieved laugh. "Good," she said simply. After a moment of silence, she started again. "I've been tested, you know," she said softly. "I passed the 'Magneto' test."

"Magneto, Magneto … taught you to fly!" he remembered. "You mentioned him once before, just said he was 'complicated.' How'd you pass his test?"

"Magneto is a badguy who believes himself to be the goodguy," Terra explained, "and he's one of the Professor's oldest friends, and bitterest enemies. Magneto fights for the rights of mutants, but he goes about it all wrong, and comes off like a terrorist. He makes a habit of attempting to recruit young mutants away from Xavier, and he cornered me one time and gave me his line."

"And?" he prompted when she didn't continue.

"I have to admit, he was compelling. He makes good arguments, and he fights for a worthy cause, but there are just too many flaws in his basic philosophy. I saw through what he was selling, and I told him so … then I kicked his ass," she added with a smile.

"Really? Go, Terra," he put in.

"Well, OK, so he was kicking my ass, until Kurt and Bobby and Kitty showed up, and we all got out of there." She paused and looked away thoughtfully. "No, but seriously …" she started. "I've been tempted by evil, and I resisted without hesitation. I just need you to … to know that I've changed. I'm not that scared little girl anymore."

"You grew up, Terra. I get it," he said softly. "I think you're belaboring the point a bit, here."

She laughed and patted him playfully on the shoulder. "OK, sorry," she said. "I guess getting that out wasn't so bad."

"Come on," he said as he stood up next to her. "Let's go to bed." She took his hand, and as they walked toward the bedroom, he continued, "I'll fuck the hell out of you and you'll forget all about this unpleasantness."

She stopped in her tracks and gave a sudden, surprised laugh. "B.B.!" she exclaimed. He just looked back at her with a big grin. "Actually, that does sound like a good plan, though," she said with a smile as she walked with him into the bedroom and shut the door.


	7. SEVEN: Sunday

SEVEN

(Sunday)

Logan awoke the next morning alone in bed. He pulled on his jeans and tee shirt and went out to find Terra, still in the big pink tee shirt, in the kitchen making breakfast.

"What's for breakfast?" he asked.

"Brunch, really. It's almost eleven. And, waffles," she replied.

"To you this is brunch?" he muttered, glancing at his watch. He collapsed into a chair at the dining table, in front of his Micro homework but ignoring it completely. Terra asked him how he took his coffee, then set a cup down in front of him.

As she started to walk away, he put a hand on her arm to stop her. "Terra?" he started gently, giving her a serious, meaningful look. "I think we should talk. I think there might be a problem."

Terra looked suddenly concerned as she knelt down beside him, taking his hand. "What is it B.B.?" she asked fearfully.

"Well, it's just that …" he started, searching for the right words. "I've realized something about you, and it's been eating at me." He paused, and Terra just shook her head, concerned and confused. "I've realized that … you're a 'morning person,' and I just …" He paused, then looked her in the eye with a mischievous grin. "I just don't know if I can live with that," he finished, trying to stifle a small giggle.

Terra's eyes went wide as she realized he was joking with her. "B.B.!" she exclaimed, surprised, angered, but still trying not to laugh. She let go of his hand and smacked him in the arm as she stood up. "Dammit, B.B., you scared me," she started, resentful but still playful.

"Sorry, sorry. I couldn't resist," he replied through playful laughter.

"I'm a morning person, huh?" she replied as she put their waffles on plates. "Just because I get up at a reasonable hour and don't waste half the day asleep …"

"And then you want to end the night's patrol at midnight, when things are just getting interesting," he put in.

"What?"

"It's a question of 'when do you sleep?' At night, when there's interesting things afoot, or in the morning, when everything's kind of boring, anyway."

Terra laughed. "So it's not about being a lazy bum at all, then, is it?"

"Not at all." He paused, giving it some thought, then continued, "Well, OK, it's a little bit about being a lazy bum, but … I think laziness is highly underrated, anyway."

Logan cleared away his homework and Terra brought their meals to the table, and their playful banter continued through breakfast.

x

"That wasn't very nice," Terra started after a long silence. "That 'I think we have a problem' thing."

"I'm serious," he replied playfully. "You being a 'morning person' is something I'm gonna have to get used to."

"No, I'm being serious, B.B.," she said more sincerely. "I see that you still like playing jokes on people, but that one hurt. There's a lot about my past for you to have a problem with, and-"

"Oh, come on, Terra!" he exclaimed. "I was kidding. I was making fun of you being a morning person. I hoped I had made it clear to you by now that I don't have a problem with your past."

"I know, but …"

"OK, look. I'm sorry, OK? That was an insensitive way to go about teasing you, and I'm sorry, but I didn't mean it like that. I was only thinking about what a big deal it is that you're a morning person. I went out with this girl named Becky who was a morning person, and she'd drive me crazy. She used to-"

"Don't change the subject."

"Your past is not a problem for me, OK? I accept it. I accept you. I always have." She just sat and looked him in the eye for several seconds, and he softly continued, "I love you, Terra."

Just when Terra looked like she might cry again, she shook it off and smiled at him. "Thank you," she said gently. "For everything. And, I love you, too." She seemed to shake off the intense emotion again, and turned her attention back to her waffles. "Anyway, shifting gears, don't let me forget," Terra started with her mouth full. "We didn't call David back yesterday. Remind me later to do that. Let's try to have dinner with him tonight."

"Sounds good," Logan replied. "I've actually got some questions for him about that fight I'd forgotten about. I think I remember him teleporting in combat, and it wasn't the big production with the green energy sphere, he just blinked from one spot to another during the fight. I think … I may be mistaken, it was eight years ago."

"Wouldn't surprise me, actually, if he can just 'blink' around like Kurt does. I'm guessing he's a lot more powerful than he seems." She paused to take another bite, then continued, again with her mouth full, "Where's he from, anyway? Some other dimension? Some alternate Earth?"

"Don't know. I know he considers himself an alien here. I know he's not entirely human, like there's the fact that he's 500 years old."

Terra's jaw dropped in shock, her mouth still full of food. "What?!" she exclaimed.

"Or, no, closer to seven now, he says."

"Seven _hundred_ years old?" she repeated in disbelief. "But … he's our age. Maybe a little older, actually … I'd give him 25 to 28."

"Physically, yeah, but he's immortal. Says he's been 25 for a few centuries now."

"Damn," Terra muttered as she shook her head. "Remind me to tell him he looks good for an older man." After taking another bite, she added, "Come to think of it, he was 25 when I meet him seven years ago, too."

"Exactly," Logan replied, trying to hid an amused little grin. He found it funny that Terra was in the habit of talking with her mouth full. He thought about telling her so, but decided that it would just make her self conscious about it and she'd stop talking, and it was actually kind of cute, so he decided against it.

Terra continued, again with her mouth full, "That explains something, actually. David told me the other day that he's a nomadic explorer of the universe, and that's how he met the Titans, and that's how he met the X-Men. And I thought to myself, how much of the universe can you really have covered in the last … what? … 5 to 10 years? But if he's been at this for centuries, that makes more sense. You can make a lot of friends in that time."

"That's why Raven called him in the first place, in the hopes that he knew of somewhere good that we could take you to get help. He's been around the block a few times, you know? He's seen things. Fortunately for everyone, in his travels he'd once met the X people, and … and the rest is history."

"Yeah, fortunately for _me_. He saved me, you know. I'd have … well, OK, it was the Professor who spent so much time working with me and helping me heal, but without David's help, and yours, and I guess Raven's, too, it wouldn't have … What?" she suddenly exclaimed. "I'm being serious here!" Logan was still trying to hid that amused little grin, but it was growing, and she caught it. "What's so damn funny?" she demanded.

"Nothing, nothing," he said, laughing at himself. "It's just …"

"What?"

He hesitated another moment, then finally spit out, "I think it's really cute that you talk with your mouth full."

Terra froze, staring at him, and swallowed hard. "Sorry," she muttered sheepishly as she looked down.

"No, really, I think it's cute," he insisted. "It's kinda child-like, or something."

Terra rolled her eyes. "Great, now I'm child-like," she groaned.

"No, but in a good way," Logan said, then laughed again. "I just would have thought … you know, someone who grew up in a school would …" He stopped and laughed again at the look of amused, embarrassed shock she was giving him. "Do they not teach table manners at this school?" he continued through his laughter.

"I'm sorry, OK?" she exclaimed. "I know it's a bad habit. I get it from eating lunch with Kitty every day. She's worse than I am."

"It's fine, really," Logan insisted. "I think it's kinda cute. I wasn't going to say anything because now you're going to be all self-conscious about it and stop talking to me."

She just smiled at him. "You're so sweet, B.B.," she said after a moment. "No, but it is a bad habit, and I should watch that. I'm usually better about it, but I'm just so relaxed and comfortable with you right now … I was better when we were eating in public, wasn't I?"

Logan thought about it for a second. "Yes. Yes, you were," he replied.

Terra just smiled. "Anyway … what were we talking about?"

"Dangerous Dave the Dyno-Mage," he replied with a big grin.

Terra laughed at this, then looked puzzled. "Dino?" she repeated.

"No, 'dyno.' As in 'dynamic,' you know?"

"Oh, right. You'll have to call him that when we see him, I'll bet he'll like that. 'Dangerous Dave.' That's funny. Anyway … should get to know Dave better. He saved my life, I should at least buy him dinner."

"What, with the money that he gave you?" he commented, then laughed at her defeated reaction.

"Oh, yeah," she muttered. "Hell."

x

They finished breakfast, and Terra volunteered to clear the table. As she stood at the sink rinsing syrup off their plates, Logan turned his chair to watch her. The knee-length pink teddy bear tee shirt, while obviously child-like, was also terribly sexy, especially when, he suspected, she had nothing on underneath. After a moment, she felt his eyes on her, turned to him and smiled.

"So, what do you want to do with the day?" she asked as she dried her hands. "It's Sunday, and that just feels like a lazy, stay-at-home, do-nothing day to me. Maybe we could go to the park for a while."

"Sure," he replied. "Which park? San Francisco has lots."

"I dunno," she said with a smile. "The good one. In the mean time …" She took a step away from the counter and slowly stripped off the tee shirt, revealing that she was, in fact, wearing nothing underneath, then went to him and sat in his lap facing him, her legs straddling his hips. She deliberately placed his hands on her butt, then leaned in and kissed him, wrapping her arms around his neck.

As she pulled Logan's tee shirt off, he put in, "See, I'm thinking the park might be nice later, if we get around to it …" He paused for a long, passionate kiss. "But this might be a full day, right here."

Terra just smiled for a moment. "We'll see what happens," was all she said.

x

Some time later, they lay naked on the couch, drifting in and out of a light nap.

"What time is it?" Terra asked sleepily.

Logan glanced at his watch. "Almost three."

"Wanna go to the park?"

"Sure."

"Maybe pick up a burger to eat there?"

"Sure."

"Oh, but you don't do burgers," she muttered. "What kind of fast food are you in to?"

"Mike's on campus does an awesome bean cheeseburger. That, and pizza are my mainstays."

"All right, then," Terra groaned, laboriously pulling herself off of Logan and rising to a seat on the couch. "The cheeseburger calls to me. Let's go."

Logan couldn't help but laugh to himself as he followed her into the bedroom to get dressed. He'd dated skinny girls before, and they got expensive because they were _always_ hungry. Conveniently, this particular skinny girl was also rich, thanks to David's generosity.

He was about to ask if she knew where he had gotten the money, when she said, "What are you grinning about over there?"

"Nothing. Skinny chicks. You've got a metabolism like a hummingbird," he stated simply.

Terra seemed to think about taking offence at this, then decide against it. "I guess you'd know," she replied. "You who've actually been a hummingbird."

Logan laughed. "Yeah, exactly."

"What's that like?" she asked as she dug through her duffle.

"What, being a hummingbird?"

"Sorry, I forget," she said, looking up at him with a smile. "You've told me that you don't really like to try to describe what it feels like to be in one of your animal forms."

"It's just that I don't know what to say. I've been morphing since I was an infant. I was born green, and my first morph was when I mimicked the family dog when I was like 18 months old. Changing my body is just something I do, something I've always done, and I don't know how to describe it to someone who can't."

"You once told me it was like describing sight to a blind man."

Logan laughed again. "Did I say that? When?"

"When we were talking in my bedroom one time."

"Wow, Terra. That was seven years ago."

Terra just nodded as she continued to get dressed. "Our time together meant a lot to me, B.B. I try to hold on to the memory of it as best as I can. That's why I'm so fascinated by all your pictures. I was actually wondering if you could burn me a CD with all of them, instead of just a few prints."

"Sure."

They finished dressing, Logan in blue jeans and his favorite black tee shirt, with the red logo of some local metal band on the chest, and Terra in her Capri jeans and flip-flops, with a black tee shirt of her own.

"So, Terra, I was thinking …" Logan started as he pulled on his cycle boots. "If you want to go to Mike's for a burger, I should call Mitch. You've been here since Friday now, and it would be rude to Mitch not to introduce you while you're here, after everything I've told him about you."

"Oh, have you, now?" she said with a smile. "Which one's Mitch?"

"He's probably my best friend right now. I mean, I'm tight with Feather and his friends, and I'm still tight with Vic through phone calls and email, but Mitch is probably my best friend right now. And you haven't met him yet, and that just doesn't seem right."

"Absolutely, then," Terra agreed. "Call him. We'll do lunch."

"You should know …" Logan began seriously. "Terra, I'm sure you have … I hope you have, at least a couple of friends back home that you've talked to about Slade and your involvement with him. I hope it's not just the Professor."

"No, I've talked to Kitty about it a lot," she replied. "And in later years, I had heart-to-hearts with Bobby and Marie and a few others about it. They understand, or at least accept it."

"Good," Logan said, then paused for several seconds. "Mitch knows the whole deal," he finally spit out. "What happened was important to me, too, and I've talked to my best friend about it. I just thought you'd want to know, if you meet him, that he knows … about you."

"OK," she said simply. "Good, thank you. I wouldn't want to be surprised by something like that."

"And you should also know," he continued, "that, all appearances to the contrary, Mitch does in fact have tact and discretion, and I'm pretty sure he's not going to say anything stupid or embarrassing."

Terra laughed. "You're 'pretty sure,' huh?"

Logan just shrugged. "This is Mitch we're talking about."

"Call him," Terra said decisively. "Let's do lunch."

As they grabbed their jackets and headed out the door, Logan gave Mitch a quick call. He had only to mention Terra's name and Mitch was jumping at the opportunity to meet her.

x

They met at Mike's café fifteen minutes later and got acquainted over a round of cheeseburgers. Mainly, Mitch was full of questions about what Logan was like as a kid. Terra, of course, was full of embarrassing stories about her B.B. Terra clearly enjoyed recounting her experiences with the Titans, and gave Mitch many energetic tales of their adventures together.

She asked if he had any good stories about Logan, actually referring to him as 'Logan' for once. Mitch replied that they mostly involved the two of them chasing girls together, so she probably wouldn't want to hear it. He did have a tale eerily similar to Feather's about an encounter with a group of 'mutie bashers.' Again, Logan had 'cleaned their clocks' without using his morphing ability.

"It's a question of speaking a language they understand," Logan explained. "If I'd morphed on them, they would have been freaked out that mutants are so powerful, and been even more afraid of us. If I take them on as a human, what they see is that mutants are tough and can hold their own, and it earns us a degree of respect."

Mitch proudly pointed out that he had taken out two of the 'mutie bashers' in the time it had taken his superhero friend to clean up the other three, and they all agreed that Mitch was indeed a bad-ass, for a civilian.

After more than an hour of sitting around talking, Mitch had to get to a study group, and politely excused himself. He gave Terra a big hug, said it was 'truly awesome' to meet her, and went on his way.

After he left, Terra turned to Logan, relieved. "I kept waiting for him to go, 'So, Terra, what was it like being a supervillain and trying to kill your only friends?'" She sighed. "But he didn't."

Logan took her hand. "Like I said, he does, in fact, have tact and discretion, he just frequently chooses not to use them. Anyway, let's get out of here."

x

After lunch, they rode out to one of San Francisco's many fine parks, one with a good view of the bay. Logan produced a blanket from his saddlebags, and they laid under a tree doing nothing, aside from periodically making out, for the rest of the afternoon.

As they lay together watching the sun begin to set over the Pacific, Terra turned to Logan.

"Hey, B.B., ya hungry?" she asked.

Logan laughed gently. "Remember what I said about skinny chicks?" he asked playfully.

"Yeah, OK, so I'm a hummingbird," she replied flatly. "Come on, then. Feed your hummingbird."

Logan poked her gently in the ribs. "Call Dave," he muttered.

Terra's face lit up. "Right, right! Let's try to have dinner with David. That would be nice," she continued as she dug her phone out of her purse. "Hi, David, it's Terra," she started. A short pause, then laughter. She pulled the phone away and turned to Logan. "He knew that 'cause I'm the only one on the planet with this number." She turned to the phone again, and continued, "Anyway … We were thinking we'd like to have dinner with you tonight … Yeah, sorry I didn't get back to you yesterday. No, but David, I wanted to say, again … and still … thank you, seriously, for what you've done for me. Taking me to the Professor, well … you saved my life."

A brief pause, then more laughter. "You and B.B. are always trying to hand off credit to each other. You're both so terribly modest. It's cute. Anyway, I've been busy getting re-acquainted with one of the men who saved me, and I'd like the chance to get to know the other, so why don't you …" A pause, then, "Yeah, her too, I guess … No, you're right, tell her … just tell her I said thank you. And tell her that I'm better now, and would like the opportunity to prove it to her."

"Raven?" Logan put in. Terra just nodded.

"Anyway, so since you can come to San Francisco _much_ more easily than we can get to New York … right … B.B.? He wants to know when and where. Here, why don't you …" and she handed the phone to Logan.

"Hey, Dave," he started.

"Hey, Logan. So, this is your town, but I'm thinking dinner for three and then drinks over a pool table. I'm sure you can find us a nice spot. Anyway, Logan, I wanted to ask you …" He paused, then continued softly, as if not wanting someone else on his end to hear, "So … are things going well? By which I mean … have ya nailed her?"

Logan burst out laughing. "Several times, yes. Have you?"

"Not this round. I think next time, though. I got close."

"Well, if you don't want to interrupt by coming out here, I understand."

"No, I think the break will be good. Give her time to think about me, you know?"

Logan laughed again. "Anyway … dinner, then? We've got lots of options."

"Well … I believe strongly in the philosophy that 'when in Rome …,' you know? When in San Francisco, I shall eat like a San Franciscan, and I believe that means seafood."

"The Jumbo Shrimp it is, then," Logan declared. "But this time, you're buying."

Terra patted her purse and added, "This time I'm buying."

David heard her and laughed. "That's right. I guess she told you, Logan, that I gave her some money for a decent hotel room if she needed it. Just in case things didn't work out. I'm glad she didn't need it."

"She didn't mention what it was for, no," Logan replied. "That was considerate of you."

"I do my best. Anyway, The Shrimp, in … say … half an hour?"

Logan paused thoughtfully for a moment. "You're back home at the Tower in New York, and you're going to meet us at The Shrimp in half an hour."

"Yes …" David said slowly, as though it was obvious.

"Teleportation is just a weird thing to me. Anyway, since you're on the other side of the continent and all, say hi to Tin Man and the others for me …"

"That reminds me, Vic said to say hi to 'Salad Head.' I assume that means something to you."

Logan just laughed. "All right, see you there."

As he said goodbye and handed Terra her phone, she asked, "What did I not mention?"

"That all the money he gave you was for a hotel room if you didn't want to stay with me. That was considerate of him."

"Well, that, and so that we could go out and have fun with it, since you're just a starving college student, and so, presumably, broke. But, yes, it was also so I wouldn't feel any pressure to go home with you. He warned me you may not be the same B.B. I remembered."

After a moment, he asked, "Am I?"

Terra had to stop and think about this for several seconds. "Yes and no," she replied finally. "But I like the end result."

Logan just smiled and took her hand as they walked back to his bike.


	8. EIGHT: Dinner with David

EIGHT

(Dinner with David)

Twenty minutes later they were sitting at a table at The Jumbo Shrimp, Terra enjoying another purple margarita, and Logan with his usual scotch on the rocks. They were idly chatting about Logan's workload this semester, when David surprised them, standing next to their table.

"Hey, kids. Mind if I join you?" he said casually. They both stood up, and everyone said hello. Terra gave David a hug, Logan shook his hand, and as they got seated, Terra gave David a quick once-over. He was in a black dress shirt, no tie, black pants, black leather boots, with a lightweight, pale gray trench coat hung loosely over it.

"You look sharp, David," Terra started. "B.B. was doing the all black thing last night, and it looks really good on both of you."

David gave a shy grin. "Thanks." He paused and gave her an obvious once-over as well. She was still in just a black tee shirt, with Capri jeans and flip flops. "You, Terra, are just … 'hot' does not even begin to cover it."

"That's sweet," Terra replied with a smile.

"Hey, Dave?" Logan started slowly as a thought came to him. "Isn't that exactly what you wore all week eight years ago? And what you were wearing that day seven years ago? And what you were wearing, minus the trench coat, the other afternoon?"

"Yeah, and what you were wearing at the mansion the other day, too," Terra added.

David laughed. "Yes, OK, so this is kind of my 'Earth clothes.' This is what I wear when I'm traveling in your worlds." He just shrugged. "I like it, I think I look good."

"You do," Terra agreed.

"I mean, give me a break, you guys are superheroes," David said. "You people wear the same thing every day, too."

"So, anyway," Logan began. "You've just arrived from the Tower?"

"Yes."

"How are the guys?" Logan asked.

"Dick and Kory are off for a romantic getaway this weekend …" David started.

"Wait," Terra interrupted. "You mean Robin and Starfire, right?" When David nodded, Terra's face lit up. "Robin and Star are together, now? That's excellent! How long?"

David turned to Logan for the answer. "Since before I moved," he replied. "A few years."

"That's excellent!" Terra repeated. "Good for them! Anyway …"

"The others all send their best. Vic says-"

"Vic is Cyborg?" Terra asked quickly.

David nodded. "Vic says be sure to say hi to 'Salad Head.' And you, too, Terra. Vic said to say he's glad you're doing well. I believe Kid Flash's exact words were, 'don't know her, never met her, not my deal.' I like The Kid. He's funny."

"Yeah, he's a cool cat," Logan agreed. "So, David, I have a question. Did you just teleport to the middle of campus, then take a cab here?"

"Came straight here, actually. Why?"

"Why, then, did you take Terra to the middle of campus Friday night?"

"It's a matter of where I was coming from. Friday night, I was coming from Xavier's place, and just now I was coming from Titans Tower."

"So?" Terra asked.

"One's in this dimension, and the other's not."

"And that determines where you land?" Logan asked.

David was about to reply when the waitress came to take his drink order. It was the same girl as the other night, Logan's friend Becca.

"What's good here?" David asked seriously.

Logan shrugged. "What do you like?"

"No, seriously … this is wine country, right? I want something local."

Becca recommended something from a vineyard just south of here, and David agreed.

"Anyway …" Logan continued as she left, "You took Terra to campus first because …?"

David launched into an explanation of six-dimensional teleportation and the use of anchor points, magical beacons in space-time that he can lock on to, to ensure that he lands in the same timeline that he left. When traveling locally, he didn't need them.

"And to you, coming from New York is local?" Logan asked.

David nodded. "Same planet. No time travel involved. Much simpler. Faster, too."

"That reminds me, the day you first met the Titans, during that big fight with the battledroids, you teleported in combat, didn't you?"

David had to think for a second. "Probably. I do that."

Terra put in, "I knew it. David can 'bamf.' That's pretty cool."

David laughed at this. "Haven't heard that term for it before."

"It's what we call it when my friend Kurt teleports. That's the sound it makes. I wonder, though … do you actually 'bamf'?"

David shrugged, then suddenly disappeared in a flash of green light. It went off like a camera flash, and he was instantly gone.

"Wow," Terra said softly, then paused to look around the room. "Where'd he go?"

Logan shrugged, also looking around the room, then spotted him walking towards them from the direction of the front door.

"Was that a 'bamf'?" he asked as he sat down again.

"Not the way Kurt does it. His is with a burst of fire and stinky smoke and a loud 'bamf' sound. Yours just kinda whistled a little. Still very cool, though."

"Fire and smoke, huh?" David said with a grin. "I like this guy's style."

Logan asked, "So the big energy sphere is just for inter-dimensional jumps, then?"

David nodded. "Much bigger deal, navigating trans-dimensionally. Anyway, so Terra … what have you been doing since I dropped you off? Having fun with Logan?"

Terra smiled self-consciously and took Logan's hand. "Having lots of sex, mainly," she muttered softly. Before David could respond, she continued excitedly, "Oh, we went out on patrol, and I got to see 'The Beast' beat up a bunch of street punks. It's was cool."

David laughed and shook his head. "Figures. This is what a couple of superheroes do on a date. They beat up badguys."

Becca returned with David's wine, and looked like she had a question. "Hey, Logan …" she started hesitantly. "Who's your new friend?"

"Becca, this is David. Dave, this is Becca, we had class together last semester."

They shook hands and said 'hello,' and Becca continued. "So, David … did I just see you … teleport? … out of your seat?"

David flashed a big smile. "Yeah."

"Good, I'm not going crazy. I saw that green flash, and then you came through the front door … Are you a mutant superhero, too? Is that how you know Logan?"

David thought about this for a second. "I am neither a mutant nor a superhero, but I do have superpowers, and I fight the badguys sometimes."

"That's really cool. Two superheroes hanging out in my bar. I feel really safe now, you know?" she said with a small laugh. "It's like having cops in here, or something."

"Three," Logan said proudly, pointing to Terra. Terra just waved, and Becca looked to her in surprise.

"You, too?" she said.

"I am both a mutant and a superhero, yes," Terra said with pride.

"Wow, three superheroes. Even better." Becca's face lit up as a thought came to her. "Oh, what are your superhero names? The Beast, and …?"

"This is Terra," Logan said, pointing to her, then turned to David. "And …?"

"The Black Wolf," David said with a small grin.

"Cool. Good to meet you guys," Becca started, then turned suddenly back to the bar. "Well, I've got to …" she started. "I'll be back for your dinner orders in a bit."

As she walked away, Terra playfully poked David in the arm. "The Black Wolf, huh? What's with that?"

"What? It's my name," he said simply. "David Blackwolf."

"Oh, right. Is that … what? … old English?"

"Translated. My birth name is Damioun Al'ragara. But then, in my native language, a 'ragara' is a big wolf-like predator, and the 'al' prefix means the color black. So I just translate it into whatever language I'm speaking at the time. So-"

"How many languages do you speak?" Terra interrupted.

David shrugged and shook his head. "A few hundred, I think. I'd have to count."

"Wow. Sorry, didn't mean to interrupt. Your name …?"

"Is Damioun Al'ragara. But my name always _means_ 'black wolf' wherever I go, and I've used it as a title before, when it was appropriate."

"Cool," Terra replied. "Did you say 'Damioun?' That's pretty."

"Thanks. I've gone by Damon or Dami or Davi or David … depending on what language I'm speaking."

"What language is Damioun, originally?"

"Amonite. It's a Valadorian language, you wouldn't know it."

This puzzled Terra for a moment. "We were wondering before … Where are you from? Some alternate Earth?"

"No, another planet entirely. It's called Valador, and yes, it's in another dimension."

"And Valadorians live to be 700 years old, I hear," she said with a smile. "B.B. told me, and I wanted to say you look really good for an older man."

David gave a small, embarrassed laugh. "Thanks. No, but, funny point there. Some Valadorians do live to be upwards of 1,000 years old, but not the Humans. I came by my immortality artificially, but I'm still not as old as some Ellahu I know."

"What are Ellahu?" Logan asked. "An alien race?"

"Valador's got lots of sentient species, you understand," David started, "and several of them are related. Ellahu and Humans are both races of Men, and they're not physically very different. Here …" He gestured to the empty space between his chair and Terra's, and there was a man standing there.

"Jeez!" Terra cried as she jumped away, startled by his sudden presence. David burst out laughing, and the man just stood there quietly while Logan and Terra looked him over. He was human enough, around 5'5" and thin of build, with a long black ponytail that revealed tall, pointed ears. He was in rustic, Medieval attire, with a sword on his hip and a bow and quiver slung across his back. He stood calmly and slowly looked back and forth between Terra and Logan.

"This is an Ellahu, what you would probably call an Elf," David started as his laughter subsided. "Sorry, but I love doing that to people."

Terra reached out and passed her hand through the Ellahu man's chest. It reminded her of touching Kitty while she was out of phase; it appeared solid, but there was simply nothing there.

"Does it talk?" she asked, gesturing toward the illusion.

"When I want it to," said the Ellahu man calmly.

"That is an excellent illusion, David," she said, clearly impressed.

David waved his hand dismissively and the Ellahu disappeared. "Thanks. They're handy."

"And Ellahu live to be 1,000 years old?" Logan asked.

David nodded. "The guy I just showed you looked to be in his early 400's. In Human years, that would be … what? … late 20's, or so. Around my age."

"And what is your age, again?" Terra asked.

"You tell me. Around 26, maybe?"

"No, your real age."

"Oh … let me think … in Earth years, 647."

"Wow," Terra muttered, impressed. "So … how old are you going to live to be?"

"Well, I'm immortal, Terra," he explained. "I've stopped aging, and I'm going to live until something kills me."

"Big double wow," Terra said softly.

Logan asked, "So, did you find a magical fountain of youth, or something?"

David shook his head. "High-tech solution, actually. I found a world with this super-advanced medical technology, and they genetically re-engineered me. Took out the aging process."

"And that was, what? … 620 years ago?" Terra asked.

"Around 600, yeah," David agreed.

"No, but exactly how long," Terra pressed. "How old were you at the time? Wouldn't that be your physical age now?"

"Not actually. I was 42 when I had the procedure done." Terra just looked confused, and he continued. "I've grown a bit younger over the centuries, and it's hard to say exactly how much. The funny part is, I'm actually not sure if I'm going to keep getting younger and younger, or if my body is stabilizing on an optimal adult state."

Terra continued to look confused. "Wait, this throws me more than the fact that you're an alien. You used to be 42, and now you're 26 again? How weird is that?"

David laughed. "Kinda weird, yes. It's been very slow, though. I've age-regressed about 20 years over the past 600 or so."

"And did you say you're not sure," Logan started, "whether or not you might keep growing younger and younger until you're a kid again?"

David shrugged. "It would take a couple more centuries, but if I ever reach a point where I look 18 again, I'm going to go back to the doctors that did the genetic re-engineering and get them to switch it forward again."

"You were once an older guy," Terra said in disbelief. "That weirds me out more than you being a world-hopping alien. More than you being 600 years old, even." She sat up and leaned in close to him. "What's it like being a grown up?" she asked seriously.

David laughed. "Well … not sure what to tell you, kid. It's not that different, really."

"I joked earlier that you look good for your age," Terra said. "I guess that's true in more ways than one."

"Thank you," David said with a smile.

"And I'll bet you were a very distinguished 42 year old, too."

"Well, here …" David started. He waved his hand, and another man appeared standing between himself and Terra. It was David at the age of 42, dressed in a Valadorian tunic and cloak. His black hair was graying a bit at the temples, and he wore a short-cropped salt-and-peppered beard, but he otherwise wasn't all that different. "This is me right before the anti-aging procedure."

"A very handsome older man," Terra decided. "Very 'Sean Connery.' Actually, more 'Harrison Ford'."

"Yeah, I see the Harrison Ford thing," Logan put in. "Even now, actually, in his twenties, he's got the Han Solo thing kicking."

David laughed and shook his head as the older David disappeared. He was about to reply when Becca walked up behind him, looking terribly confused.

"Who was that?" she asked. "He looked like you. Was that your brother? What was he wearing? Did he just teleport? Is he coming back? Should I get him a drink?"

David just laughed and gently patted Becca's arm. "No, it's OK. He won't be back."

"OK, then," Becca said, still confused. As she sat down a fresh round of drinks, she asked, "Did you guys want to order, then?"

"I think we need a minute with the menu," David replied.

Becca seemed to have another question about the guy who was just here, but decided to dismiss it, and walked away as David reached for his menu.

"So what's good here?" he asked.

"The Pacific crayfish," Logan replied.

"Don't know that one."

"If you want local seafood, it's the way to go."

"I don't see it on the menu," David muttered.

"He means the lobster, David," Terra put in. "B.B.'s just messing with you."

Logan then explained that the Pacific crayfish was this ocean's answer to the Atlantic lobster, that they were nearly identical species, and that people called them both lobster.

"Sounds good," David decided. "Sounds like good San Franciscan food."

"And that's important to you?" Terra asked. "You asked for a local wine, too."

"Have you ever heard the saying, 'When in Rome, do as the Romans do,'? I believe very strongly in that philosophy. I figure, what's the point in traveling the universe if you don't take in the culture, live like a native. Wherever I go, I try to eat, dress, and live like a native. It's what makes traveling fun." He turned and nodded his head toward Logan. "So … a salad for Salad Head?"

Logan smiled. "Pasta, man. It's the way to go. They do a fettuccine here with huge chunks of mushroom and tomato … it's awesome."

David gave him a big smile. "Salad Head. I like that." He reached out and tossed his hand through Logan's thick head of dark green hair. "For the big green mop."

"Oh, the 'mop,' huh?" Logan snapped indignantly. "That's it. Terra? Would you please cut my hair?"

David laughed at his reaction. "Sorry, did I strike a nerve with the hair?"

"I know I need a haircut, OK?" Logan grumbled.

"I'll cut it," Terra put in. "I'll make you look sharp."

"Sharp is good," Logan agreed. "Less shaggy, more sharp."

"It is kinda seventies," David said with a laugh. "But then, so is mine, a little, so whatever. We've both got shaggy hair."

"Less shaggy, more sharp, please," Logan repeated to Terra.

"No problem," she replied, running her fingers through his hair. "Long enough that I can still do this, though."

"Anyway, Terra," David started. "Will you be trying the Pacific crayfish as well?"

She shook her head. "They're a little too much like big roaches for me."

"Yes, but they taste nothing like roaches, big ones or little ones."

Terra paused and stared seriously at David for a moment. "You just said that like you'd know because you've had roaches. Please tell me I'm wrong."

David cracked a slow grin. "Well, you know … there are cultures where insects are-"

"Don't go there!" Terra said, holding her hands up suddenly. "Don't go there! I'm gonna eat soon and I don't need to picture you eating … ew! I can't think about it!" Terra squealed as both hands went to cover her face, and the men both laughed at her reaction.

"OK, Terra, if it makes you feel better," David started, still trying not to laugh. "I wouldn't actually eat a roach. They're dirty, disease-ridden little animals."

"Good, thank you," she replied. "That's-"

"Tree beetles, on the other hand …" he started, and Terra's hands again went to her face.

"Ew!" she squealed again.

David laughed again and turned to Logan. "They're best when seasoned with crushed pepper," he explained.

"Ew!" Terra said.

"You know, Terra," Logan started, "Even here on Earth, in places like Central America, insects are considered food."

"I know, I just don't think it's appropriate dinner conversation, OK?" she exclaimed.

"OK, but I just have one last comment," David said.

"What's that?" she asked.

"Insects, in general, are terribly bland. They taste like whatever they're seasoned with. I mean, beef tastes good, and fish tastes good, but insect just kinda doesn't taste like anything. Except for the ones that are really bitter."

"That's fascinating, really, but can we change the topic now?" Terra pleaded. Just then, Becca returned to the table. Terra eagerly greeted her and ordered a seafood pasta salad. Logan got the fettuccine and vegetable dish, and David asked for the Pacific crayfish tail and shrimp plate. It took Becca a second, then she caught that he meant the lobster, and laughed.

"The zoology student has been teaching you something about the local wildlife, I see," she commented.

"He has. Have you known Mr. Zoology here very long?" David asked.

Becca thought for a second. "We've had two classes together, but I only studied with him for the second one. But, yeah, a little while, now. He's a good guy."

As Becca walked away with their orders, David turned to watch her go, then turned back and leaned in close to Logan.

"Did you fuck her?" he asked seriously. It was Terra that burst out laughing.

"No, I didn't," Logan replied. "Why?"

David turned again to look at Becca, standing at another table, then turned back to Logan. "I'd have fucked her."

"She has a boyfriend," Logan explained, laughing.

"Well, if she didn't," David said confidently, "She'd have fucked you. I can tell."

"God, David," Terra started, "For an older man you certainly think like a 25 year old."

"Oh, believe me, sweetie, that line of thinking does not go away with age."

"Good to know," Logan remarked. "And thank you for your confidence in my ability to bag her, if she wasn't taken."

"Oh, I could see it in her eye," David replied seriously. "I've got the eye for it." After a second, he pointed to his right eye and added, "This eye, not this one," as he pointed over to his left eye.

Logan and Terra looked to each other, confused, then looked back to David, who was grinning knowingly at them.

"Huh?" they both said.

"I've got a cybernetic eye," David explained. "And it knows a few tricks."

"Robot eye, huh? Cool," Terra said. "I thought your thing was magic, though."

David shrugged. "What, a guy can't do both? I've got a little of the high-tech thing, too. Like this eye, for instance. I've had it upgraded several times, and it knows some neat tricks."

"Like what?" Logan prompted.

"Are you familiar with the high-tech lie detector where they point a camera at your eyeball?"

Terra's face lit up. "S.H.I.E.L.D. uses something like that, to interrogate prisoners."

David nodded at her. "Right, exactly."

"Wait, who or what is S.H.I.E.L.D.?" Logan asked.

Terra seemed unsure where to begin. "They're a government … thing. They're cool enough, they work with The Avengers and a few other superheroes sometimes. They're the goodguys, basically. They're the government. Anyway, yes, I'm familiar with that kind of lie detector test, that measures micro pupil movements, or something. What about it?"

David pointed again from his right eye to Terra. "My camera, your eyeball."

Logan smiled. "You can run a lie detector test on somebody just by looking him in the eye? Now that's sneaky. Is that what you just did to Becca?"

David nodded. "Along with a small battery of other tests I've put together. I'm a mage, so I can read auras, and I can see a little something about her basic nature and disposition, her attitudes. You might call it her 'alignment.' I'm also a little bit telepathic and a little empathic, so I can open my mind to her surface thoughts and emotions. Plus, my cyber-eye is both monitoring the micro-variations in the skin temperature of her face with its infra-red, while running a high-tech stress analysis lie detector on her eye at the same time. Plus, my cyber-ear is running an analysis of her voice pattern. I'm also a damn fine poker player, and know how to read her face with my human eye while the cyber-eye does it's thing. The combined result is a pretty reliable way to read a new person very quickly. I use it a lot, and find it terribly handy."

"It just seems rude," Terra said flatly. "You should get to know someone the normal way, not go running lie detector tests on people all the time."

"Well, I only use this little test when I think it's appropriate. It's not like it's always on, or something." He paused and looked thoughtfully at Terra for a second, then continued. "I used it on you, you know, when we first met." Terra didn't respond, and he continued. "You remember. I looked you in the eye and said, 'Tell me you regret being the badguy'."

"I remember. And then you tested my reaction?"

"I needed to know quickly what I should do with you. I needed to know if you posed a continuing threat."

"And you tested her, and found a hero inside," Logan said confidently as he took her hand.

David looked at him seriously, looked to Terra, then back to Logan, then down at the table. "Honestly," he started softly, "What I saw was a scared little girl who didn't know if she was a hero or a villain, and desperately needed help." After a moment, his face brightened. "But, hey, I knew that Xavier could help her, and so he has." He gestured at Terra and continued, "I look at Terra now and I definitely see a hero."

"Me, too," Logan agreed, smiling warmly at Terra.

"Thanks, guys," she said softly. "Anyway, using that test on our waitress is still rude, I think."

"Hey, it's a great way to gauge my chances of scoring with a chick," David said with a big smile. "Or, in this case, my friend's hypothetical chances, or whatever."

"Still rude," Terra said simply. "It's a good thing you can't just pull a Jedi mind trick on her, make her want to sleep with you."

David seemed genuinely offended. "That wouldn't just be rude, it would be wrong. That would be unethical. What I do is a purely passive scan of the signals they're sending. There's nothing manipulative about it."

"I still think the Professor would have something to say about you using your superhuman abilities to help you 'score'."

David thought about this for several seconds, slowly growing more concerned. "I am in kind of a gray area with this one, I guess," he conceded.

"Look at it this way," Logan put in. "We all do our best to read what a woman wants, what she really means. That's all you're doing, is doing your best to understand her."

"Hmm," Terra said. "I think you guys are both rationalizing. Anyway, here she comes," she said as Becca approached with their meals.

"How are my table of superheroes doing?" she asked cheerfully. "So what do you do, Black Wolf?" she asked as she set down his plate. "What's your superpower?"

David thought for a moment. "Little of everything, actually," he said casually.

"OK. Mysterious about it, huh? What about you?" she asked Terra.

"Terrakinesis," she replied.

"What's that?"

"Lithokinesis," Logan said.

"Geokinesis," David added.

"Huh?" Becca said.

"I move stone," Terra said simply. "There are several names for it."

"Move stone, huh? 'Litho,' right. With your mind, you mean? That's cool." Becca stepped back and looked them over again. "So, we've got the elemental earth girl, the animal man, and … Mr. Mysterious over here. Well, I know you teleport, at least."

"He does lots of things," Logan put in.

"You three should start a super-team out here. Cali could use one."

Terra laughed and said, "Not a bad idea."

"Maybe, but Terra and I are just visiting," David said. "This is The Beast's territory."

Becca gave a friendly laugh. "Well, I'll let you guys dig in," she said, and slipped away again.

"She seems cool," David commented after she left.

"Yeah, Bec's all right," Logan agreed.

"I'd have fucked her," David muttered with a smile as he took a bite, and Logan and Terra both laughed.

"Boyfriend, remember?" Terra pointed out.

"Right, but if she didn't, I mean …"

"Right."

x

As they got into their meals, Terra started, "So, Mr. 'little bit of everything,' what all can you do, anyway? I know you teleport and make illusions. B.B. says you throw Starfire bolts and make … what did you call it? … 'energetic solids?' And he says you can turn people to stone."

"To stone?" David replied, a little surprised. "When did I … oh, yeah! I did, at that big fight when I met you guys. I was kind of showing off for Raven a bit. Petrifaction is a flashy and energy intensive trick."

"Petrifaction?" Logan asked.

"Petrification, same thing. To petrify."

"You and Raven both use magic, so are your combat abilities similar?" Terra asked. "I mean, I pretty much know the limits of Raven's ability, but-"

"No, you don't, Terra," David put in. "You haven't seen her in seven years. She's advanced a lot."

"No, I mean, I'm sure she has, but that's not my point. We're talking about you, David. What do you do?"

David smiled and shook his head. "If you want a list of superpowers, you're not going to get it. I've been studying to be a bad-ass mage for several centuries, now. My bag of tricks is extensive."

Terra gave a fake little pouty face. "Why can't I have a list?" she demanded.

"OK, gimme a second," David muttered, and took a deep breath. "Teleportation, flight, telekinesis, telepathy, mana bolts, or Starfire bolts, you called them … force fields, energetic solids, um … I can create solid matter …"

"Ooh, what kind of matter?" Terra asked.

David wordlessly gestured toward Terra's hand, which was resting on the table, and a fine black spray shot onto it, hardening into a thick mass of sticky black webs which adhered her hand to the table.

"Um, my illusions you've seen," he continued casually, as Terra poked at the web with her fork. "I'm capable of pretty rapid healing, both of myself and others. I can turn invisible. I do, in fact, know the Jedi mind trick," he paused and looked at Terra, "And no, I have never used it to 'score'."

"Good," Terra put in, still occupied with the webbing holding her hand to the table.

"Oh, and I can meta-morph people, the way Logan does himself."

"Really?" Logan put in, surprised. "You can morph like I do?"

"Beast, no one can morph like you do," David said proudly. "And, actually, I can't do myself very well." He gestured vaguely at the right side of his head. "This high tech equipment doesn't really morph well. I can do other people, though."

"You can turn someone to stone, or turn him into a frog?" Terra said, clearly impressed. "You really are a wizard."

David nodded. "It's true," he said simply. "I am a wizard. Prefer the term 'mage,' actually, but, same thing."

"Wow," Terra said softly. "Now can you get this goo off my hand? I can't eat."

David made a small gesture and the webbing disappeared. "I was waiting for you to say something," he said with a playful grin. "Plus," he continued, "I've got the bionic eye with infrared, low-light, zoom, digital recording, etc., the bionic ear with a few different types of super-hearing, and the micro-computer in my brain. Also-"

"Wait," Terra stopped him. "Micro-computer?"

"In my brain, yes."

"To run the eye and ear?" she asked.

"It does a whole lot more than that. I use it to calculate six-dimensional trajectories, among other things. It's how I speak a couple hundred languages. Oh, and last but not least, after all these years, I have become a proficient mid-level martial artist, with or without my staff."

"See?" Logan said, playfully poking Terra in the arm. "He knows the value of non-powered combat."

"Absolutely. I guess that's the extent of my superhero resume. Others powers to be identified as needed. Do I qualify?" he asked playfully.

"More than qualify," Logan replied.

"The Black Wolf is clearly a bad-ass," Terra added.

"So your weapon of choice is the staff, then?" Logan asked. "Mine are the escrima."

"Well, I use it like a single escrima stick sometimes. Just a baton, really," David said as he dug a black pen out of his back pocket. It enlarged in his hand to a little over two feet long, and he handed the wooden baton to Logan, who looked it over appreciatively.

"Good weight," he commented. "What's the crystal head?"

"Valadorian crystal. There's not a good Earth analog. It's kinda like green quartz. Soaks up magical energy like a sponge, though."

"Looks fragile."

David shook his head. "Magically hardened. Plus, it's set to deliver a contact mana bolt on impact, like a stun baton."

As Logan returned the magic wand, he added, "I'd like to get you in the ring some time, Dave. See what 600 years has taught you about the martial arts."

"Oh, I don't know, Logan, Raven just kicked my ass yesterday morning. I'm sure Robin taught you well, though. I'd like to see what you've got."

"Ooh, a 'man date,' cool," Terra said with a big smile. "Can I watch?"

"Watch? Don't I get to beat on you, too?" David asked.

"Not my thing," Terra said with a dismissive wave.

After a moment, Logan started to David, "I'd like to get her in the ring, too, but I don't think she'll go for it. She says there are fighting classes at the X school but she doesn't take them."

"Not my thing," Terra repeated. "I think I said it well the other night, actually. I'm proud to be a mutant, and don't feel the need to learn to fight as though I wasn't."

"I'm surprised the Professor …" David started, then reconsidered his words. "No, Charles wouldn't push it. I'm surprised Storm and Wolverine let you be on the team with that attitude."

"Oh, I can fight, David," Terra replied confidently. "Believe me, I can fight. I fight like a mutant, just like all the other X-Men."

"What if you lose your power?" Logan asked. "Does that relieve you of your duty as a superhero?"

"How often has that really ever happened, B.B.?" she asked sarcastically.

"Once, that I know of," he replied seriously.

"OK, that's not fair," Terra said, suddenly just as serious. "I put that collar on myself by choice. That was not combat, I was not stripped of my power and then defeated, I didn't-"

"OK, you're right, I'm sorry," Logan said quickly. "Bad example. I'm just saying it _could_ happen. You could get knocked out and wake up in a collar like that, or …"

David put in, "You know what's a lot more likely that that? What if she loses her weapon?"

"I don't use …" Terra started. "Oh, you mean stone."

"Logan doesn't know Iceman and Pyro," David began. "But they're a good example for you, Terra. One requires a weapon, the other does not. You require a weapon, Terra. Without it, you're powerless."

"Yes, but when am I ever without _the ground?_ Pyro needs an ignition source, but I just need dirt. Dirt is everywhere, David."

"Not in a high tower," Logan put in. "You remember that time when we got kidnapped by some loony with an army of robots, and-"

"You run into a lot of those, don't you?" David asked with an amused smile.

Logan just laughed, and continued, "And he was trying to kidnap the Titans, and he gassed you and me …"

"And we woke up in those energy field prison cells, yeah," Terra remembered.

"And I had to save both our asses because the guy had Terra-proofed most of the building he was holding us in. Like David said, without stone, you're powerless."

"And like Logan said," David added, "That does not excuse you of your obligation as a hero. Especially if you've got teammates still counting on you."

"Fine!" Terra suddenly exploded. "Fine. If it's such a big deal, I will try to learn some basic moves, or something."

"At least a little self defense, Terra," Logan said gently. "So you can protect yourself if you really need to."

"Fine," she repeated. Then, more softly, "Will you teach me?" she asked with a smile.

"Of course. There's a 24 hour gym with a good sparring room over on-"

"I didn't mean now, B.B.," she said with a laugh.

"Anyway, who are Iceman and Pyro?" he asked. "Friends of yours?"

"Well, Iceman is Bobby, who I'm sure I've mentioned, who is a dear friend, and Pyro works for Magneto now. David's point was that Pyro is unable to spontaneously generate fire. He can manipulate any existing fire, make it huge, throw it around, whatever, but he has to have a source of ignition."

"Couldn't he just keep a Zippo in his pocket, or something?" Logan asked.

Terra laughed. "That's exactly what he did when I knew him. Anyway …" she paused and looked back and forth, considering them both for a moment. "Anyway, thank you, both of you, for your concern, but I'd just like to point out that I've been a superhero for some years now, and the problem you two are describing just doesn't come up as often as you seem to think. And on those occasions when it does, I still have my utility belt full of rocks and sand." She paused, then added boastfully, "And you two should see what I can do with sand these days."

"Ah, but what if you don't have your utility belt?" David asked. "What about right now? What if right this minute, badguys tried to seize this restaurant? Unless you want to rip up the foundation and destroy the restaurant, you don't really have your weapon with you, and …"

He stopped when Terra held out her hands and a dozen small, marble-like stones sprang up from around her chair and hovered around her hands.

"Hmm," David said, with a slightly defeated look. "You get those out of your purse?"

"It's a little belt I wear under my jeans, actually," she replied casually.

"Fine, I take back what I just said," David said simply. "But this doesn't mean you shouldn't still learn some kind of martial art. It's good for you, in more ways than one."

Terra's attention was focused on her belt, where she was floating the stones a few at a time into their little rubber mountings and popping them back into place. Reloading her belt looked to be a tedious process, but she got through it quickly. "Fine," she said, glancing up at them briefly. "I guess it would be good for me. When I get home I'll tell the guys I want to learn some basic martial arts self-defense stuff."

Becca walked up just as the last stone was reloaded, and didn't notice them. "Martial arts self-defense stuff?" she started. "I used to do that. Back home I studied Tae Kwon Do for a few years. Got my blue belt," she said proudly. "Can I get you guys anything else? Maybe some dessert?"

"Ooh, Terra," Logan started excitedly. "Split a chocolate cake with me."

She smiled. "You know, I can easily afford to get us each a piece of cake."

"Yeah, but they're huge. Split one with me."

Terra agreed to the chocolate cake, they got a round of coffees, and as Becca collected their plates, David asked, "Blue belt, huh? You still any good?"

Becca smiled at him. "I feel confident that if some punk tries to take my purse, I can break his nose … _and then_ go running and screaming like a little girl."

"That's it!" Logan exclaimed, pointing up to her. "That's it exactly. Hurt him hard and fast, surprise him with it, and then get the hell away from him quickly. Run screaming, attract attention, attract help. That's exactly what you should do."

Becca smiled proudly. "Oh, that reminds me, Logan. What ever happened with your women's self-defense class? Did I miss it?"

"It's going to be next semester. Scheduling and budgeting and all that."

"Well, remind me. I don't want to miss it, and I've got lots of friends interested, too. I'll be right back with coffee and cake," she said as she walked away.

"What's this?" Terra asked, surprised and impressed. "You're teaching a self-defense class?"

"Not yet, but I'm planning to."

"Well … tell us about it," Terra said excitedly.

"OK, so the school wants to sponsor a seminar, hopefully a series of them, on self-defense, specifically rape defense for all the college girls. They asked the SFPD, and they came to me, thinking that if they put a superhero's face on it more people would show up. I agreed only if I could actually teach what I wanted to teach, and they agreed to that only if their SFPD guy approved of my material. So, I met the police academy's senior hand-to-hand instructor. Seems like a good guy. His name's Daniel, and he's a bad-ass. We've met twice in the gym to compare what kind of techniques we're going to want to use, and we seem to be on the same page. I think the two of us as co-instructors is going to work well."

"That's exciting, B.B.!" Terra exclaimed.

"That is pretty cool, Logan," David agreed. "You can help more people by teaching them to help themselves."

"Exactly."

"Seems kind of …" Terra started, "I don't know … arrogant, I guess, for the PD to insist on 'approving' what you want to teach."

"Oh, no, I understand completely," Logan replied. "If you try to teach some little girl who doesn't know anything a complicated, fancy karate move she's going to forget the details and screw it up if she ever tries it for real, and that'll just get her in more trouble. You've got to keep it simple and to the point. Teaching this kind of self-defense is nothing like teaching how to fight. You, Terra, I want to teach how to fight."

Becca returned with dessert, and as they all dug in to the truly massive hunk of triple chocolate cake, Logan laughed to himself and continued, "I'm gonna try to hook Daniel up with Flamebird. I think I've mentioned Flamebird to both of you. The hot blonde 'Batgirl' wannabe. She works in L.A. and I want to bring her up here for the self-defense thing. I think it'll really help the students to see a fellow pretty little girl with us, demonstrating on me and Daniel how to do it right."

"And you're going to 'hook her up' with Daniel the cop?" Terra asked, laughing.

"He says he likes them cute and dangerous. Dates Army chicks and other cops, and says he's always wanted to meet the right superhero. I figured, why not? Flamebird's single. I'll introduce them. Mainly, though, I'm hoping she'll have something new to add to the class. I don't know where she learned to fight, but I've seen her in action, and she reminds me of Nightwing. I mean, Nightwing taught me to fight as a human, but Flamebird knows how to fight as a small female. I think she'll be really valuable."

"I'm sure she will be," David agreed. "How small is she?"

Logan shrugged. "Terra's size, but more muscular. Not hugely so, I mean, but definitely athletic. She looks really good. If this works, Daniel is definitely going to owe me one."

"Did ya fuck her?" Terra muttered softly, a big smile on her face. Logan just looked at her in surprise. "What?" she exclaimed gleefully. "I knew David was about to ask, so I beat him to it."

"Well, I was thinking it, anyway," David admitted.

Logan just shook his head. "You two are terrible," he muttered.

Terra looked over to David sharply. "I think that means he did," she said.

"No, it doesn't," Logan replied. After a moment, he continued, "It means it probably would have happened, given more time. But, all our time together was spent on the job, then she had to get back to L.A., so we never got a chance to find out."

Terra thought for a moment. "Fair enough," she decided. "How long ago was that?"

"Last year."

David asked, "And do you keep in touch?"

"By email," Logan answered. "She's alerted me a couple of times when some lowlife fled from herself and the cops and was headed my way. That kind of thing."

Terra asked, "So, do you think she has a fair amount of respect for The Beast and his ability?"

Logan's eyebrows furrowed in puzzlement. "What an odd question," he commented.

"What I mean is," she continued, "You've fought together, right? While she was here, you fought the badguys side by side?"

"Yes."

"Did she follow your lead? In the fight, did she look to you first?"

Logan thought about this for a second. "I guess so, once or twice. What are you getting at?"

"If you were to start Titans West, would she join, and follow you as team leader?"

Logan burst out in soft laughter and looked away. "Titans West? That's what this is about?"

"Your waitress friend said we should start a team. So, what about it? Us, Flamebird … You mentioned another one called Impulse. Would he join?"

"Impulse is a teenager," Logan replied. "If I asked him to join a team of adults he wouldn't say no."

"And was there a third you'd mentioned? Power Girl?"

"Power Girl, yeah. I don't know her that well. She may prefer to work solo."

"Whatever. Do we need one more?" Terra asked. "Maybe one of the honorary Titans on your computer?"

"Do we need another?" Logan repeated. "How many is that, six? I think that's plenty."

"Five. Unless, of course …" She looked to David. "I hadn't counted you, but if you feel like taking a break from exploring the universe to spend some time as a superhero, I'm sure you are _more_ than welcome to join."

"To join your hypothetical little super-team? Sure, why not?" David replied with a grin. He looked off into space, and muttered, more to himself, "Gee, I'd need a costume …"

Terra paused and looked back and forth at them seriously. "It's not hypothetical, David. Well, I guess it is right now, but … this could be a serious plan here. We could do this."

"I'm a college student, Terra, not-" Logan started.

"I don't mean now, B.B.," she said seriously. "Right now you're a student here and I'm a student at the Institute. But in maybe two years, we could both move to L.A., gather up your friends and really do this. I'm serious."

Logan was silent for a moment, considering this. "Well, I have been talking about Titans West ever since I moved out here. It hadn't occurred to me that you'd be part of it. I thought you wanted to stay with the X-Men."

"That was my plan until I realized this was an option. I mean …" she paused and looked him in the eye thoughtfully. "The Institute is where I grew up. Given the choice, I think I'd rather come live my adult life with you."

Logan took Terra's hand and suddenly had to fight back a tear. "I think that's the best news I've ever heard," he whispered.

Terra leaned out of her seat and threw her arms around Logan, and they held each other tightly for a long moment.

"Now that's a Kodak moment," came softly from David.

As they both turned to him, laughing, still holding each other, David pointed at them and said, "Hold that pose," as a small green light flashed from his right pupil. "Got it."

As they sat back in their seats again, still holding hands, Logan turned to David. "You do that, too?" he asked.

"What?"

"Take pictures with your cybernetic eye."

"Who else does that?" David asked.

"Cyborg."

"Oh, yeah …" David said thoughtfully. "I guess he would, wouldn't he?"

As Terra wiped the last tear away, she asked, "Can I get a copy of that picture?"

"Sure. I just need a piece of blank photo paper. In the mean time …" He pointed over his shoulder, making a circular motion with his finger, and a thin, glowing green oval outline a foot across appeared in the air. It was filled a moment later with a still frame shot of Logan and Terra holding each other. "See, now this kind of thing is exciting to me," David said with a smile. "This is a magically generated illusion of a digital image stored on a computer. I love mixing magic and technology like this." He gave a dismissive wave, and the illusory picture disappeared. "Anyway, yes. I think Titans West is a smashing idea. So, the tentative roster is The Beast, Terra, Flamebird, Impulse, and Power Girl. Right?"

"I think that sounds like a damn fine team, actually," Logan said.

"Me, too," Terra agreed.

"What color is Power Girl's hair?" David asked out of nowhere.

"What?" Logan replied. "Blonde, why?"

"Yeah, I had that feeling. You realize what you've done, don't you, Logan?" David asked with a smile.

"What do you mean?"

"The team consists of you, a teenaged kid, and three hot blonde chicks. Nicely done, my man."

They all laughed, and after a moment, Logan began, "Purely unintentional, I assure you. Besides, my heart already belongs to one of them, so the other two are … inconsequential."

Terra just gave him a warm smile and took hold of his hand again.

"Well, then …" David started. "Send them to The Black Wolf."

"You'd like Flamebird, Dave. She's pretty cool," Logan said with a grin.

Terra shook her head at him. "First you want to hook her up with the cop, and now you want to hook her up with David? What are you, her pimp?"

"What?" Logan said defensively. "It's the 'guy' thing to do. I'm more interested in someone else, but that doesn't mean that Flamebird isn't still a good catch, so I should set her up with a friend of mine. It's part of the 'guy' code, or something."

David agreed, and they all laughed again. "OK, then," Terra said finally. "What's her name, anyway?"

"Flamebird's?"

"Yeah. Her real name."

Logan shook his head. "Can't tell you."

"What?" Terra cried. "B.B., it's _me!_ Come on … who am I gonna-?"

"No, it's the principle," Logan said firmly. "She asked me not to tell anyone, and that included other superheroes. So, sorry, but …"

Terra looked away in mock annoyance, then finally looked back at him and smiled. "OK, then. I respect your decision to respect her wishes, actually. Good for you."

"Yes, yes, good for you," David agreed. "Anyway … we're out of cake. Shall we stay and chat over coffee? Shall we migrate to the bar and have an after dinner drink? Shall we leave this place and go find entertainment elsewhere in the city? Logan, do you know of a good pool hall? Do either of you play pool?"

"Yes, I do," Logan replied with a playful seriousness in his eyes. "And I should warn you, I'm good."

"And I should warn you, Logan," David replied, looking him in the eye with equal intensity, "I first picked up a pool cue more than 100 years ago."

"Ooh, that sounds like a challenge to me, B.B." Terra said playfully.

"You're on," Logan replied, still looking at David, who just smiled confidently. Logan looked up to flag down Becca for the check, and found her already coming towards them with a pot of coffee and the check in her hands.

"Another round?" she asked, gesturing with the coffee pot.

"No thanks, we're leaving," Logan replied.

"Well, you can pay this whenever you're ready," she said, setting down the bill.

Terra was digging in her purse. "No, hang on," she said, glancing up. "Go ahead and take this." She glanced at the total on the check, produced two paper-clipped bundles of bills, and handed them to Becca, saying, "Just keep this, and thanks so much, Becca."

Becca's eyes slowly went wide as she quickly calculated in her head just how much of a tip she had just received. "Wow, thank you, thank you so much," she gushed. "Thank you … um, Tara, and Black Wolf, and Beast. Ask for me next time you're here. You guys are _my_ superheroes, right?"

"Becca? It's Terra," Logan said gently, pointing at Terra. He spelled it out to her, "T-E-R-R-A. Terra. It's Latin. Right?"

Becca's face suddenly lit up in a pained expression as it dawned on her. "Right!" she exclaimed. "Latin for earth, and she's got litho … something. Right, sorry. I just now got that. That's clever."

"Thank you," Terra replied gently. "I like it. Anyway …"

"Anyway, thanks again. Good night, guys," Becca said as she walked away.

"How much did you just tip her?" Logan asked as he stood up and reached for his jacket.

"A lot. Maybe 30 of a pretty big ticket. I figured, David gave me so much …"

Logan turned to David and asked, "That reminds me … Dave, where'd you get the money?"

David just smiled.

"C'mon, Dave," Terra prodded. "Where'd you get the money?"

"Let's just say, Terra, that I sometimes do things of which your Professor would not approve," David said with a small, mischievous grin.

"You didn't steal it?!" Terra exclaimed.

"No, of course not. Not exactly …"

"What do you mean, not exactly?" she demanded.

Logan poked Terra in the arm excitedly. "I bet I know what he did," he said. "I bet I know. He went back in time and went to a bank and deposited some money into an account with interest, then jumped forward in time to the point that all the interest had compounded into a small fortune." He looked excitedly to David for confirmation. "That's it, isn't it?"

"In fact, that does work, and I've done it before, but not in this instance," he replied as they walked outside.

"What'd you do, then?" Terra asked.

"Well, I hadn't been on this particular Earth for very long, you see, and I didn't want to go through all the bother of bouncing around in time trying to set myself up some money, so I took a shortcut."

"What'd you do?" Terra pressed.

David looked around to see that no one was listening, then tapped his right temple, saying, "I used this here computer, and I accessed an international bank's financial records and fabricated an account with them. Then I went to an ATM and made a withdrawal."

"_David!!_" Terra exclaimed, smacking him in the arm. "That is, too, stealing!"

"Not exactly," David said defensively.

"Ya know, Dave," Logan put in, trying not to laugh, "they call that 'hacking' and you can go to jail for it."

"Only if they catch me," David replied with a confident grin.

"Wait, David, seriously," Terra said as they walked, an amused grin on her face, but trying to be serious. "Explain to me how that is not obviously stealing."

David had to think for a second. "It was never someone else's money that I took from them. It didn't exist until I inserted some numbers into a computer file, and then, 'blammo,' instant funds."

"And you think that makes it OK?" Terra asked.

"Are we walking to the pool hall?" David asked, turning to Logan.

"No, we're walking to my bike. I'm suddenly not sure how you're getting there," Logan replied. "You could teleport, I suppose."

"Just give me directions, or the address, and I'll get myself there," David replied. "It's cool, actually. With my computer, I can access-"

"Don't change the subject, David," Terra said firmly. She was still smiling, but clearly serious about this. "Do you think that makes it OK?"

David looked her in the eye for several seconds, a big grin on his face, then turned back to Logan. "I can access your world's global communication system and use-"

_"David!"_ Terra exclaimed, hitting him in the arm.

"What? OK, OK …" David said, laughing. "It's like this, Terra," he said, then looked her in the eye and grew a little more serious, but still smiling. "I am not a superhero. I never claimed to be. I am a traveler, and in my travels, I need money. Wherever I am, whatever I'm trying to do, I probably need local currency to do it. So, I have a few different methods of acquiring funds for myself. One involves time travel, like Logan described. Or, since I told you I can generate or transmute solid matter, I can, when necessary, magically manufacture bricks of gold or steel, or whatever's valuable, to trade for local currency. Or, I can just go to another world where I can get gold or steel for cheap, then take it to a world where it's more valuable. Or, in high-tech worlds like this one, where everyone deals in electronic money, it's often easiest to just hack the system and make some. And yes, I realize that if a local did what I did he could get arrested for it, but I think my case is unique because I live outside the system. I'm not a citizen of this planet, I'm just passing through."

"And again, you think that makes it OK?" Terra asked.

David shrugged. "Maybe, maybe not. I don't lose any sleep over it, though."

They continued their walk across the parking lot, and Logan now stopped next to his bike, gesturing to David at the stripes on the biceps of his jacket and on his gas tank.

"Wow, Logan, very nice," David exclaimed softly. "Is this a softtail?"

Before Logan could reply, Terra said, "Well, David, I just can't believe that of all the things you are or could be while traveling the universe, that 'bank robber' would be one of them."

"Oh, come on, Terra, give it a rest," David groaned, starting to grow genuinely tired of this. "I'm not here to uphold the law, I'm not a cop or a superhero, I'm just a guy, a traveler, going through life doing what I think is right. Sometimes I break local laws, and you know what? I don't really care. Not all local laws are applicable to me. OK? Give it a rest." He turned back to Logan and continued, "So, where are we going, and how do we get there?"

Logan gave Terra a quick look to see if she was upset about being dismissed like that. She just shrugged. "The Rack," he said, turning back to David. "You go down this street to-"

"Hold on," David said. "Watch this." He stared of to one side for a few seconds, his eyes focused on nothing, quickly darting back and forth as though he was reading. "I'm accessing the internet," he said, tapping his right temple, "through the local cell phone network … There, I've got The Rack's address and phone number … Accessing global satellite maps, there's San Francisco … That's the address of The Jumbo Shrimp there, and that's The Rack, there … triangulate distance and bearing … and bingo, I am locked on for teleport."

"Wow," Logan muttered.

"Yeah, OK, wow," Terra agreed.

"I'll go save us a table," David said with a smile. "See you in, what, ten minutes?" He took a step away from them, then disappeared in a bright green flash.

Logan started to laugh as he unlocked his helmet. "Wow," he said again. "Is there nothing the man can't do?"

"Tell me about it," Terra agreed. As they climbed onto the bike, she continued, "I just can't believe we've been going out all weekend on stolen money."

"Give it a rest, Terra," Logan said gently. "He's not perfect. They say that power corrupts, you know? As powerful as he is, be glad a little money laundering is all he does."

"Yeah, if that is all he does …" Terra muttered as they sped away.


	9. NINE: The Rack

NINE

(The Rack)

They arrived at The Rack to find David playing 9-ball solitaire on a far corner table. There was a pitcher of dark beer on the table nearest him, along with three glasses, two empty and one half full. Terra was surprised to note a burning cigarette in an ashtray on the table with them.

"Just warming up a little," he said as they approached. "I got us some beer." He set his cue on the table and poured their drinks as they sat down. "I see why you like this place, Logan," he said casually. "This is a fine little college town pool hall."

"If I haven't said so before," Logan replied, "thanks for calling me 'Logan.' Terra simply refuses."

"But you're my B.B.!" Terra put in playfully.

"No problem, my friend," David replied. "I understand the need for name changes. Mine changes all the time. I been Damioun, Damon, Davon, Davi, Dammi, … whatever. They all mean me. Also, just locally, Al'ragara has been Black Wolf, Lobo Negre, Loup Noir, Schwarzer Wolf, Akti Rasha … No, you wouldn't know that last one. Wrong planet."

"Do you have any preference at all?" Logan asked.

David considered this for a moment, casually picked up the cigarette and took a drag, then continued, exhaling smoke as he spoke. "It all depends on who's saying it. It's like how only Terra calls you 'B.B.' I mean, I know this girl in 23rd century France who always calls me Loup, and the way she says it just drives me crazy, you know?"

"I know. Only Terra can get away with calling me 'B.B.,' and I love it when she does," Logan replied.

"But then, back home on Valador, I'm Damioun when I'm in Androgel and Damon when I'm in Kildor. So, really, whatever. You know? It's all me." David looked to Terra, who was shaking her head at him and clearly trying to suppress a little giggle. "What's so funny?" he asked.

"I'm sorry," she replied. "That's fascinating with your name and all, I just didn't realize that you smoke, too."

David groaned and rolled his eyes. "What are you, my mother?" he moaned sarcastically. "I can't smoke, I can't rob banks … what's next?"

"But it's just so bad for you, David," Terra exclaimed. "For someone who really does plan to live forever, I would think you'd take better care of your body."

David just shook his head at her and went to rack the table for a new game. "First, if it's only once in a while, it doesn't really hurt anything," he said from the table, his back to her. "And if I do keep smoking for any period of time, I can always purge my lungs magically, so the health issue isn't a problem. Second … When in Rome, you know?" He turned to her and gestured across the pool hall. "I'm surrounded by college students who are drinking and, more than half of them, smoking. And that's what I'm doing. I'm living like a local." He set the rack and walked up to Terra, who sat on a barstool. "Look, if the smoke offends your non-smoker's sensitivities, I will gladly put it out and not light up the rest of the evening. It's no big deal. I just think it goes well with beer and pool."

Terra smiled at him and shook her head slowly. "I'm not going to make you put out your smoke, David. I'm not that rabid a non-smoker. I was just surprised."

David returned her warm smile. "You'll find I'm full of surprises," he said softly, then turned to Logan. "Logan, would you like the table? Warm up on that rack, and reset the table when you're ready for me to kick your ass," he said with a confident smile.

"First, give me that," Logan said, reaching to David's hand to take the cigarette. He took a long drag and held it for a moment.

"_B.B.!_" Terra exclaimed in shock.

Logan just smiled at her and exhaled slowly, looking at the cigarette curiously. "Nope. Still don't like 'em," he said flatly, then handed it back to David and turned to inspect the case of cues on the wall. He laughed when he saw Terra still staring at him in shock. "What, so I've smoked before," he said casually. "I didn't care for it."

"Good," Terra replied slowly.

Logan found a cue with a weight he liked, and gave it a few practice strokes. "Are you telling me you've never even tried it?" he asked.

"I took _a_ drag, once, and had a five minute coughing fit," she replied.

David took another drag and put in, "Well, then you didn't do it right."

"And I'm not interested in trying again, OK?"

"No one's saying you should, sweetie," Logan replied as he walked over to the table. David took Logan's seat next to Terra and snuffed out the butt of his cigarette.

"It is a dirty habit, I know," he said gently. "You'd be amazing at the things I've done to myself in the name of living like a local. I mean, I told you about eating tree beetles …"

"Ew!" she exclaimed, which made David laugh. "David, just stop, OK?" she said playfully.

Logan shook his head and laughed to himself at both of them, then focused on breaking the rack in front of him. As he ran the table, David continued to shock and disgust Terra with tales of things he'd done in the past. Attire ranging from feathers to public nudity. Ritualistic body modification, including branding and scarification, which he later had removed, of course. Eating all kinds of interesting things that other races consider food. It was when he got to eating live animals that she begged him to please, please stop.

x

"David," Logan called out as he started to retrieve the balls from their pockets. "You ready to kick my ass? Or, are you prepared to have yours kicked, instead?"

"One moment," David replied as he hopped up and walked away, headed toward the jukebox, which had been silent for some time. As he walked back to the table, he began to bob his head to the first bass-heavy, stringed riff of Led Zeppelin's _Kashmir._

"_Oh, let the sun beat down upon my face, stars fill my dream …_" David sang. He pointed to himself as he continued, "_I am a traveler of both time and space, to be where I have been_."

Logan and Terra both laughed, and David just smiled. "This is my song," he said softly. "OK, now I am ready to kick your ass. So, what's your game?"

"How about 9-ball."

"Vegas rules?" David asked. "Race to five wins? Shall we lag for first break?"

"Lag for the break? How professional of you," Logan replied as he got the two extra balls. They each shot a ball the length of the table and back again, and Logan's stopped closest to the inside rail, giving him the first break.

"Oh, before we start," David said, then held up his right hand. "I promise not to use my laser optic system to chart angles on the table … 'cause that takes all the fun out of it. And I promise not to 'teke' the balls."

"What's 'teke'?" Logan asked.

"T.K.," Terra put in. "Telekinesis. David's promising not to cheat. That's very big of you, David."

David smiled. "I fight honorably when fighting honorable opponents," he said simply. "Logan, it's your break."

As Logan lined up for his shot, Terra, who was still sitting, asked David, "What do you do when fighting dishonorable opponents?"

"Win by any means necessary," he said with a smile.

"You mean cheat?"

"Hey, it's not cheating if the other guy's cheating, too."

"That's debatable," Terra muttered, then there was a loud 'crack' as Logan broke the rack, and got the game underway. As David studied the table before his first shot, Logan caught him start to reach for his cigarettes, glance at Terra, and decide against it. Logan smiled but decided not to say anything.

"So, David," he started as the game continued. "Who was this girl that called you Loup? Did you say twenty _third_ century France? As in, she's in the future?"

David nodded, smiling as the memory came to him. "Last saw her in the year 2277. Lieutenant Jeanette Deveroux of the Earth Defense Force. Cute little short-haired brunette, and a bad-ass with a plasma rifle. Excellent detective, too. She spoke French, English, and Galactic Standard fluently, but was most comfortable in French, and always called me Loup. 'Wolf'."

"Did ya fuck her?" came suddenly from Terra, right as David was taking a shot. He froze in mid-swing, shot Terra a dirty look, then finished his shot, sinking the ball.

"Yes, I did," David proclaimed proudly as he stood up. "Yes, I did, a lot. And we took down a cartel of interplanetary gun runners together in the meantime." He paused, looking at Terra. "See?" he said, "I am the goodguy. Just because I bend local banking laws doesn't mean I'm not still the goodguy."

"OK, OK," Terra conceded. "You're still a goodguy. So, is this what you do, Mr. Traveling Goodguy? You roam the universe fighting evil where you find it and fucking the pretty girls on the way?"

Logan put in, "Hey, that sounds like a pretty good life to me."

David sunk another ball and added, "I'm enjoying it."

x

As the game began, it seemed clear that David was better at this than Logan was. He won the first game quickly, and the conversation slowed as Logan focused on his game, making a narrow comeback to win the second rack. Conversation centered on the game, whether or not one of them thought the other could make the next shot, mainly. While he played, David described to them a game of pool he had once played in a colony community on Mars. The lighter gravity required larger, heavier balls, but it was still pool. He won the third rack by a narrow margin, and as Logan was racking the fourth, he waved down their waitress.

"You guys want another pitcher?" he asked.

"Actually, I don't really feel like beer," Terra said, turning to the waitress. "How about a margarita?"

"In that case," David said, "I'm going with a scotch on the rocks."

"Yeah, me, too," Logan agreed.

They set into their fourth game and the waitress returned quickly with their drinks. While studying a shot, David absently pulled out and lit a cigarette, shot a quick guilty look toward Terra, then shook his head and dismissed it. Terra caught all this and laughed.

"It's OK, David, I don't mind that you smoke," she said. "It just surprised me at first, is all."

"Well, I wasn't going to, in front of you, but I forgot. Oh, well. It just goes so well with pool and scotch."

After a long battle, Logan took the fourth rack. On the fifth, David missed an easy shot, allowing Logan to run the table on him and win again.

"What's the score now?" Terra asked.

"Three, two," Logan replied. "My favor."

"I took the first rack," David said, "Then Logan took the second, then me, then Logan, then Logan. This is our sixth rack now."

"How many in a game?" Terra asked.

"What did we say, race to five?" David said. "We play until one of us gets five wins, which could take up to nine racks."

"Right. And you're … what? Three to two?"

Logan sunk the nine ball and turned to Terra. "Four to two," he said simply. "Are you getting bored with our game, Terra? Do you want to know how much longer we're going to be?"

"No, you guys are fine," she replied. "We're all just hanging out, talking, anyway."

"Well, I just need one more rack to win the match, so why don't I go ahead and kick David's ass one last time, then we can do something else, if you want."

David didn't reply, he just shot Logan a determined look as he racked the balls. Logan failed to sink on the break, then David took the table and ran it all the way to the nine.

"Four to three," he told Terra with a confident smile.

"I knew it. You're a shark, aren't you?" came from Terra. "You've been holding out on us."

"How about it, Dave?" Logan asked, nudging him with his cue. "You been holding back on me?"

"No, not at all," David replied. "I promise. That was … a lucky run."

Logan just nodded as he set the next rack. It was a brief game, in which Logan made more than one bad shot, and David took the rack. "Four to four," he told Terra as Logan racked what was to be the final game. It was a quiet, tense, hard-fought rack, but in the end it was Logan that came up with the win, for the game and the match. David rolled his cue across the table and came around to shake Logan's hand.

"Good game, my boy," he said.

"You really made me work for it," Logan replied.

"So, I guess this means drinks are on me."

"I don't remember making that bet," Logan said with a curious smile.

"Whatever. Let's sit down a bit."

x

The waitress brought a fresh round of drinks, and they sat around the bar table for a while, drinking and talking.

"You know, Dave, I was thinking," Logan started. "You've been traveling the universe for 600 years now, right?"

"About that."

"I've traveled the universe a bit myself, you know."

"Really?" David said, surprised.

"OK, so I've left the planet a few times, with the Titans. My point is, I've seen aliens. I mean, one of my best friends is an alien. I know that aliens generally don't look all that human. Star is a very human-looking alien, but she's still obviously different."

"What's your point?" David asked.

"I'm just wondering about all your talk about living like a local. How much of the universe can you really have covered, and been able to fit in, looking like a human?"

David's face lit up as he realized what Logan was getting at. "I see that I was unclear about something earlier. I mentioned that I can meta-morph other people, but I think I said I can't do myself."

"Right. You saying now that you can?"

"To a limited extent. No funny animals, but I can do humanoids."

"Why?"

"It has to do with the cyber-ware in my head. Living organics and inorganic material have to meta-morph independently, and since my computer is integrated with my brain on a microscopic, cellular level, the two don't line up properly when they morph back together again. I've had the whole cyber-system crash on me when I try to morph. But …" he paused and held up a finger, "But … and this is key, if the cyber-ware doesn't have to morph, if I can morph my body around it, then all is well. I have to stay essentially humanoid, or at least human sized, but with a little planning I can still morph into an alien when I need to."

Logan looked at Terra with a grin. "And I say again, is there nothing the man can't do?"

Terra just shrugged, then asked David, "So, what's your favorite alien form to be, then? I know B.B.'s favorite is the bull gorilla, right?"

Logan thought about this for a moment. "Yeah, I guess it still is. The gorilla form I've used since I was seven."

David was still considering Terra's question. "Well," he started, "If you mean the forms I've had the most fun in … Oh, I know. Here, let me introduce you to someone," he said with a smile.

"Who?" Terra asked.

"Me." David moved a barstool to one side as he continued, "Illusions are _much_ more mana energy cost effective than self-morphing, so I'll just show you a picture of myself. Here …" He gestured to the space he had just cleared next to himself and a man appeared, a man not entirely human. "This is Rani," David said as they looked him over. Rani was about four and a half feet tall, with highly animalistic, three-sectional legs and a long, thin, rodent-like tail. His body was otherwise human enough, except for the facial features. He had a distinctly feline nose and short snout, and tall, pointed ears. He was wearing a loose gray cape over a black tunic and pants, highly reminiscent of David's gray trench coat and black dress shirt, and he had black hair and blue eyes, with a face very much like if David had a cat's snout.

"This is you?" Terra asked as she stared at Rani.

"This is me. 'Rani' is the Rakashi word for an animal much like a wolf. Damia Arr Rani is a Rakashi version of myself. I used this body for many years while exploring Rakasha, from its Bronze Age on through its star-faring years, when it joined an interplanetary government. It's a fine place, Rakasha, it's like a second home to me, the same way Earth is. Anyway, I love being a Rakashi. They're great bodies. Check out the legs."

Rani was wearing tight black pants and interesting black leather boots that were cut to conform to his dog-like feet. David gestured at them and one boot and pant leg disappeared, revealing a bare leg more like a dog's hind leg than anything else, but bare-skinned and still somewhat human. Rani stood on four basically human toes and the ball of an elongated foot, the heel and ankle held off the ground at an angle.

"I know the foot may look a little awkward," David said, "but if you've got the tail to counter-balance with, it's actually quite agile. Great design for running and jumping, and I knew some truly vicious kicks." His boot and pant leg reappeared, and Rani took a step away and threw a tight jump-spin kick that Logan recognized as what Robin would have called a 'tornado' kick. His form looked good.

"You'll note the three fingers and a thumb," David continued as Rani held out his hands. "Now that's a good, dexterous hand. I think the fourth finger we have is kind of extraneous, actually, now that I've lived for a while with hands like that. And the facial features are, I think, terribly attractive, especially on the women." Rani stepped to one side, and a girl appeared next to him. "This is Milia, the love of my life."

Milia stood about to Rani's chin, maybe 4'3", with a dark blonde ponytail and big blue eyes. Despite having a cat-like snout and ears, she was undeniably a very pretty girl. She was in a black, sleeveless, low-cut top that showed off the fact that Rakashi women have very human breasts, with a white knee-length skirt, split up the back for her tail to come out. She wore what were basically small flip-flops, with painted nails and a toe ring.

"Now is that a sexy alien, or what?" David said with a big smile. He sat and stared at his own illusion for a while, and the smile slowly faded. "I miss Mil," he said softly. "We had a good life together."

"What happened to her?" Terra asked gently.

"Oh, nothing bad, she just wanted to retire. We traveled space and time together for years, explored Rakasha's past quite a bit, and eventually she started to get old and I didn't." He looked to Terra briefly, then turned back to Milia, staring into the illusion's soft blue eyes. "She wanted to stop living like a nomad, settle down, make a home, have a family, grow old together, and I … didn't want those things. Eventually, I took her home and we said goodbye." David almost looked like he might shed a tear, then shook it off, looking away as his illusions vanished.

"Anyway, that was a long time ago, and we're still friends," he continued. "I go see her at Subet sometimes. It's like Christmas or something. She married a wonderful guy who just worships her, and they have two sons now, who were almost grown last time I was there. This is Mil last time I saw her …" He made a small gesture, and an older, gray-haired Rakashi woman appeared. Where the earlier Milia had looked about 25, this one was more like 65. "She's had a good life," David said softly, the emotion thick in his voice. "And I'm glad I got to be a part of it." The illusion disappeared as David cleared his head and came back to the present. "Anyway… yeah. That's my 'ex.' That's Milia."

"That's really sweet, David," Terra said, putting her hand on his. "How long were you together?"

"Well … measured in Earth years, around 23 years. But Rakashi don't age quite as quickly as humans. When I met her she was the human equivalent of around 20, and when we broke up she was around 30."

"While you stayed 25 the whole time," Logan put in.

"I could have aged with her, since I was using a meta-morphed body anyway, but it would have been artificial, and we agreed that just didn't seem right."

"Wait, meta-morphed body?" Terra said suddenly, pulling her hand away.

"I just showed you," David started, pointing to where his illusions had been, "what I looked like when I was with her."

"Do you mean to say," Terra said, clearly annoyed, "that you spent 23 years with a woman and she never knew the real you? That's-"

"Who said that?!" David exclaimed. "Of course she knew the real me. When she met me I was undercover as a local, but eventually she learned the truth, that I'm an alien and all that. I showed her my human self, and everything. Then we went traveling, and on worlds where it was OK to be an alien, I stayed human and she stayed Rakashi, and we were together like that for a long time. I wanted to show her Earth, since it's like another second home to me, so I morphed her to fit in …" He gestured again, and a human girl appeared who looked a lot like Milia without the snout. "And we were together as humans for a while. Most of our time together, though, was spent in Rakasha's past, where we both looked Rakashi."

"OK, then," Terra said softly. "Never mind."

"Did you just say," Logan started as the human Milia disappeared, "that you spent time together as a couple, one human and one Rakashi?"

"Yeah, why?"

Logan looked to Terra with a knowing smile, and she returned it. "Did ya fuck her?" she asked, in the same adolescent tone as when she had teased him with that before.

David laughed and nodded. "She's got a sexy body, regardless of how human it is, and regardless of what I might look like at the time."

"And she was into it?" Terra asked. "Sex with a human?"

"Oh, yes, she was into it. She thought it was all kinky. Plus, she always said she liked 'being with the real me'."

"Aww, that's sweet," Terra said.

"Yes, she was. Very sweet. Anyway …" David motioned with his head toward the door, where a group of people were walking their way. "Anyway, I think we've got company."

x

Logan turned to see five people, all around his age, four big, strong guys and one girl, all walk up next to them.

"We're takin' your table," said one of them. He appeared to be the leader of this gang of lowlife ruffians. He was the biggest, anyway, and that probably made him leader.

"Actually, we're just between games right now," Logan said in a deliberately friendly, peaceful voice. "There are a few free tables over there, if you want to-"

"You don't understand, mutie, we're takin' your table," he said bluntly. "Get out of here."

"No, you don't understand, tough guy," Terra said, rising to her feet. "You don't understand who you're talking to."

"Terra, sit down," Logan said gently, remaining in his barstool himself. "I've got this."

Terra sat down again, but she continued, "This is The Beast you're talking to. He's a damn superhero."

"Don't care who the fuck he thinks he is," said one of the others. "He's a fuckin' mutie and we don't want to have to look at him."

Logan stood up slowly and faced the one who had spoken first, the presumed leader. "I don't think we understand each other," he started calmly. "My friends and I are already here, and you guys need to not be. OK?"

"What are you gonna do about it, mutie?" he said, shoving Logan in the shoulder with one hand. "Oh, I know what your thinkin', mutie, you got some kind of superpower, right?" He looked around to his crew, who had formed a semi-circle around their table. At their leader's nod, the two on either end drew switchblades. "There are fuckin' five of us, man. What're you gonna do? Huh?"

Logan just smiled politely and considered his options. Mainly, he considered how he was going to open the fight. He'd take down the leader hard and fast, and he felt sure he'd get backup from David, and probably Terra as well, using her belt full of stones. After about two seconds of this contemplation, the thought, 'Hey Logan, it's David. This is telepathy,' crossed his mind. 'Hello?,' he thought back. 'So, how do you want to play this?' David thought to him. 'We can kick their asses like civilized people, or I can just freak them out with some flashy magic, scare them off. Or, I guess, I could turn them all to stone. Your call.'

"Well?" the young punk demanded.

"Dave," Logan muttered aloud. "Freak 'em out."

David flashed a big smile and stood up, pointing to the leader. "You know what I was thinking about you, son?" he said softly.

"Who's talkin' to you?" he shouted. "You a mutie, too?"

David just smiled at him. "You know what I was thinking about you?" he repeated.

"What?" he shouted.

"I was thinking you'd make a cute bunny."

"What?!" he shouted again.

David quickly reached out and touched his shoulder, and there was a flash of green light where they touched. The bright green glow shot across his body, engulfing him, then the glowing outline of a human shrank into the glowing outline of a rabbit. The glow faded, leaving behind a small, fluffy, white, domestic bunny rabbit, which immediately began to spasm and hop about, squealing in fear.

"Jesus!" and "Fuck me!" and things like it came from all of them as they jumped back. The girl cried, "Chuckie!" as she dropped her knife and went to comfort the bunny. The one nearest to David grabbed him by the shoulder and started to bring a knife to his throat. David blocked the knife away and grabbed the man's throat, and where his hand made contact the man's skin began to turn to stone. The petrification process spread quickly up his head and down across his body. As the effect finished across his feet, he lost his balance and the stone statue fell to the floor with a heavy thud. The remaining three thugs, two men and a woman holding a bunny, all backed away slowly, staring at the statue.

"Now what?" Logan snapped after a moment. "You can keep fighting with mutants, or you can agree to play nice with us."

"What the fuck are you, man?!" the girl cried to David. "You turned my Chuckie into a rabbit!"

David just smiled. "It's magic, sweetie," he added after a moment.

The two guys looked to the girl, apparently the next highest ranking member of their social group, for instructions. She gave an urgent nod of her head, and they both dropped their knives. "Look, so, OK …" she started nervously. "Turn back Chuckie and Tony, and we'll … we'll just go. OK? We'll just go."

"And you'll give serious reconsideration to this whole idea of picking on mutants, won't you?" Logan pressed.

"Yes, yes sir. We will," she stammered.

"David …" Logan said softly. David pointed at the statue on the ground, and a beam of green laser light shot from his finger to the statue. The petrification process began to reverse where the beam hit, and quickly spread across his body. The man lay there for a few seconds, stunned and groggy, and slowly got to his feet. David then shot a green laser at the bunny. It glowed green then morphed human in the girl's arms, the man appearing wrapped in her embrace. As the five of them got themselves collected, Logan just smiled at them. "This is the part where you were leaving, then. Right?"

They slowly started toward the door, then the one who had been petrified turned back to Logan. "Ya know what, green boy? If you think you're gonna-" He stopped when Logan morphed into a ten foot tall, four-armed mugarra, and took several quick steps toward them, roaring menacingly and beating his chest with all four fists.

"Jesus!" and "Fuck me!" and things like it again came from all of them as them jumped away from the monster, literally falling over themselves to get away. Logan went human as they got to their feet, and shouted, "Get out and stay out!" as they cleared the door. He walked back to the table and looked to David. "That was fun. Nice job." He then turned to Terra, and shrugged. "Or would you rather have watched me beat the crap out of them? You seemed to enjoy it the other night."

"No, this worked," she said casually. "David, that was … I mean, wow."

"That was some serious showing off, is what that was," he replied. "Metamorphosis and petrification are _terribly_ energy intensive."

"But it was so quick," Terra continued. "I mean, 'bam' and he's a bunny."

David laughed to himself at an inside joke. "More of a 'blammo' than a 'bam'," he muttered. "No, but seriously, as soon as I saw they were going to be trouble, I started magically scanning their leader's body in preparation for a meta-morph, because I knew I wanted to show off a little. The spell actually takes a while to put together, but the transformation itself is instant."

Logan asked, "So that whole time I was talking to them, you were already casting a spell?"

"Preparing it, yeah. Getting ready to 'freak them out' if you wanted me to."

"And the petrification?" Logan asked.

"That's actually a pretty quick spell to cast, it just takes a lot of energy. Under normal circumstances, I'd just …" he pointed a finger at Logan and a small green pulse of energy shot out, striking Logan in the shoulder like a strong poke with a finger. "Stun bolt them. That, or just punch them."

"Why were these not 'normal circumstances'?" Terra asked.

"Because I was showing off. Both to freak them out, and, a little, to show off for you guys."

"Maybe stun bolts and punches would have been better, actually," Logan said.

"Why?" Terra asked. "This way stopped the fight."

"But at what cost, ultimately? These guys left with an even deeper, stronger fear and hatred of mutants than before. They now see us even more as something strange and powerful and scary. I think this is what leads people to fire-bomb a mutant's house, or assassinate him with a sniper rifle. These things happen, you know." They all nodded somberly, and he continued. "If we'd just beaten them with our fists instead … it's like speaking a language they understand. It would earn us some grudging respect."

"Logan, I'm sorry if you think I handled that badly," David said seriously. "I just thought…"

"No, you did fine. Thank you, by the way, for checking with me first. I appreciate that."

Terra looked confused, and Logan quickly continued, "Oh, David used telepathy with me, asked me what I thought we should do. I said to freak them out, so he did. I'm just not so sure, now, that it was the right choice." A mischievous grin crossed his face as another thought occurred to him. "David?" he asked. "You're some kind of time traveler, right?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Can we go back in time to before the fight, so we can duke it out with them instead?"

"Heh, I wish," David replied flatly. "Time doesn't work that way."

"Thought so. Just checking," Logan said with a smile.

"Ah ha!" Terra cried, pointing at David. "See, B.B.? There is something the man can't do."

"Now, see, technically," David started defensively, "Technically, I could go back in time by five minutes, but then we'd already be there, in the past, freaking them out with magic. I can't just erase what we already did and do it over again."

"Bummer," said Terra. "If you can't alter the past, then what's the point of time travel?"

"Well, see, 'altering the past' is just a matter of perspective. What I can do is jump us back in time, into an alternate timeline where there are two sets of us. Then the 2nd set can go interfere with what the 1st set are doing, and hi-jinks can ensue. But all this is happening in a laterally trans-located timeline. It's just as real, but it doesn't change what happened in the first timeline. I know, six-dimensional physics is strange to me, too."

"But … if you can't change the past, then …?" Terra started.

"But you have to understand, Terra, that if you go to a, quote, 'past' time where you are not already there, then it's just … the present, and whatever happens, happens. So exploring the distant past is no problem, it's just trying to muck about in your personal past that gets really tricky. Anyway …" he paused and looked around the bar. "Are we bored with this place, yet? You guys want to do something else?"

"Come with us back to my place for a bit," Logan suggested. "I could show you my really good scotch."

"Address?"

Logan told him, and David again stared off to one side, his eyes shifting about like he was reading. "Got it," he said after a few seconds, then cracked a big grin. "I love the internet," he said enthusiastically. "Lots of high tech worlds have something like a wireless internet, where I can access information on anything, instantly. It's so cool."

As they all got up, Logan waved down the waitress, another girl he had gone to school with. She brought the bill for the table and the drinks, and David paid it all and then some, laying down a substantial chunk of cash.

"Just don't ask where he got it," Terra muttered to the waitress.

"You're just not gonna let that drop, are you?" David complained.

x

As they walked out to Logan's bike, he turned to David. "So, you going to teleport to my place and wait for us?"

"How long will it take you two to get there?"

"About ten minutes."

David glanced at his watch. "It's getting late. I'm gonna pop back to the Tower and say good night to Ray. Meet you back at your place in … say, twenty minutes."

Logan laughed softly to himself. "Rather than use the phone, you're just gonna 'pop' across the continent, just to say good night? Teleportation is still weird to me."

David shrugged. "Local teleportation is actually kind of easy for me. It's the inter-dimensional stuff that wears me out."

"Cool enough, then. See you at my place. You know where it is?"

David tapped his right temple. "Address co-ordinates locked in memory."

They shook hands and David said a quick bye to Terra, then he took a few steps away and vanished in a burst of green light.

Logan turned to Terra with a curious face. "Is teleportation as weird to you as it is to me?" he asked.

"No," she replied simply. "I've known a few. Besides Kurt, there's also Gary. I should tell you about him."

"Who's Gary?"

Terra gestured for him to get on the bike. "I'll tell you later. That's not a conversation I want to start as we're getting onto your bike."

"Why not?"

She smiled at him like it should be obvious. "Because I don't want to shout the whole thing over the roar of your big, manly engine."

Logan laughed. "I'll have you know, this is an intentionally quiet ride. That's what the two-into-one exhaust pipes are good for. Still, you make a good point," he said as he put his helmet on her and secured the strap. They hopped on to the bike and sped away, enjoying a quiet, peaceful ride through town.

x

Ten minutes later, they arrived at Logan's apartment. They both took off their jackets and shoes, and Logan offered Terra a glass of wine, then broke out the scotch for himself.

"So … who's Gary?" he asked as they poured their drinks. "An ex?"

"In fact, yes," Terra replied. "An 'ex' but not an X-Man. He was a student at the Institute a few years ago. We dated for more than a year, and he's the most significant romantic involvement I've had to date, and I didn't want to talk about him, shouting from the back of your motorcycle."

Logan laughed. "Fine, then. We're not on the bike. Tell me about him. What does he do, first. He's a mutant, right?"

She nodded. "He's a teleporter."

"Does he 'bamf' like Kurt?"

"Not at all. Kurt can 'bamf' around the room as quickly as you can blink your eyes, but he can't go more than about a mile or two. Gary's teleports, he calls them 'pops,' take several seconds of forethought and warm up, but he's got an unlimited range. He can pop anywhere on the planet as easily as into the next room. He used to wake me up and take me to breakfast in Rome, just because he'd found this new little place he liked. We took little weekend holidays all over the globe."

"Wow," Logan said flatly. "How do I compete with that?"

Terra laughed. "You don't have to. Anyway … yeah, Gary was cool. Definitely not a fighter, though. He was quiet and kind of a geek. The X-Men actually did call on him a few times, to take a team to some global crisis immediately. He can pop other people one at a time, same as Kurt, so he'd just back-and-forth, back-and-forth, and move an assault team from the mansion to the terrorist situation in Madrapor, or wherever. We all started calling him Transit for a while. Made him an honorary X-Man. He loved it."

"Very cool. You were with him for, what? A year?"

"A little over."

"Why'd you break up?"

"He graduated, and wanted to go study at a better university. He was going into physics, and plans to study the quantum mechanics of his own teleportation, then build a machine that could duplicate it. He plans to invent teleportation for the world, and get filthy rich off it. How cool is that?"

"So, he moved away, and that was it?"

"Well … he could have commuted more easily than any man on the planet, but the truth is we kinda broke up for other reasons around the time he graduated, anyway. The relationship had kind of run its course."

"Yeah, I know that feeling. Mine tend to run their course fairly quickly, it seems."

"What's your record?"

"Longest relationship, you mean? I guess around four months."

"With whom?"

"Her name was Candace, and she was-"

There was a knock at the door. "She was a conversation for another time," he finished as he got up. "That would be Dave."

He opened the door and greeted David, who walked in slowly, taking in the apartment.

"Very nice digs for the Salad Head," he said slowly, then turned back to Logan. "I like your place. I like the Kermit," he said, pointing back to the picture on the wall.

"Only Tin Man gets to call me Salad Head," Logan said in mock annoyance.

"And only Terra gets to call you B.B. You've got a lot of names, Logan. You know that?"

"Look who's talking, Loup."

"Yeah, but you use all of yours at once. Mine just changes with the language I'm speaking." He turned and patted Terra's shoulder. "Hello, again, Terra. Just Terra, and nothing else."

She laughed. "B.B. and I had this discussion already. He's says I am of the one-named people, like Sting, and …" she looked to Logan.

"And Bono and Cher," he added.

"Can't forget Slash," David put in. "Guitar player."

"Right," they both agreed.

"Anyway," Logan started as he walked back to the kitchen. "Can I get you a drink?"

"You'd mentioned 'the good scotch' before," David said with a grin.

"On the rocks, coming up."

"So, David," Terra started as they sat together on the couch. "I wanted to say, seriously, thank you for this, popping me back across trans-dimensional space so that I could see B.B. again. It's really meant a lot to me."

"I can tell," David replied. "You're welcome. It was my pleasure, really. Reuniting long lost loves is definitely a worthy cause. Besides, it's my fault you two are 'long lost' to begin with."

"Don't say it like that, David. Taking me to the Institute was the best possible thing you could have done for me. You saved my life."

Logan sat across from them, offered David his drink, and gave Terra a look urging her to continue.

"Which is why I hate to ask for another favor," Terra said. "But …" David just looked at her expectantly. "I'd like to take B.B. home with me, to meet all my friends and see my life."

"OK," David said simply.

"Really? Just like that?" Terra replied with a laugh.

"I had a feeling this was coming, actually."

"The thing is, B.B.'s in the middle of a semester right now, so could we do this on a weekend again? Maybe next Friday night? And could I go home in the mean time? I've got classes this week, too."

David laughed softly and looked down, shaking his head. He was about to reply when Logan put in, "Actually, I had another thought, Terra. David … you're some kind of a time traveler, right?"

David laughed again. "I was wondering if one of you was going to catch that."

Logan continued hopefully. "When I went to see X people last time, I was on that Earth for a few hours, but gone from this one for only two seconds. Could you do something like that again?"

"Sure, why not?" David said casually.

Terra's face lit up as she grasped what they were talking about. "You could stay with me as long as we wanted, and then be home in time for class on Monday! Awesome!"

"When do you want to leave?" David asked.

Terra hopped to her feet. "How about now?"

David glanced at his watch. "In order to avoid jetlag and other temporal confusion, I like to keep to a daily time-cycle. Do you really want to show up at the mansion at midnight on a Sunday?"

"Wow, we could show up at whatever time we want, huh?" Terra said, more to herself, then looked to Logan. "Time travel is weird to me, I guess the way teleportation is weird to you."

"Terra, time travel is weird to everyone," David said. "How about we leave in the morning?"

"Are you staying the night, then?" Terra asked.

David cocked his thumb back towards the closet. "Back at Titans Tower," he said. It took Logan a second to realize that towards the closet was east, the direction of New York.

"Yes, teleportation is weird to me," Logan commented.

"I'm used to it," Terra replied, then turned to David. "Anyway, don't rush off or anything. Here, I wanted to show you something." She got up and walked toward the computer. "You may get a kick out of some of B.B.'s photos."

As David got up, he asked, "What time is good. Logan, when's your first class?"

"Nine sounds good," Terra said, typing at the computer.

"Eleven," Logan said. "Is my first class. So … yeah, nine works."

David hung around looking at old Titans pictures for about ten minutes, then said good night and teleported away, leaving Logan and Terra alone again.

x

Terra said she was going to figure out how to burn a CD of those Titans pictures, and Logan went to pack. He had two duffles, a larger one for all his civilian clothes, and a smaller one that just fit his heavy leather armored costume. He packed his civies first, then went to look at his costumes. He had three, two 'Beast' costumes, which were identical, and his old 'Beast Man' suit, which had a lot more stripes.

"Terra, come here," he called out as he pulled out two of the suits. "I want your opinion on something." He laid out the 'Beast' and 'Beast Man' suits on the bed as she came to the door.

"What is it, sweetie?" she said.

"Which do you like better?" he asked, gesturing to the two suits. "This is the one you already saw, the current 'Beast' suit," he said, pointing to the black body suit that just had two green stripes each on the biceps, ribs, thighs, and calves. "And this is the first draft," he continued, pointing to the other black suit, which had denser stripes all across the shoulders and biceps, down the forearms and ribs, and down the thighs and calves. "When I changed my name to Beast Man a few years ago, I used this one. I cut back on the stripes a while back, and now I'm not sure which one I like better."

"I like the stripy one," Terra finally decided. "It's got more character."

"You don't think it's too busy?"

"No, the other one's too … plain. It's too much just a black suit, with stripe accents. The stripy one is interesting and … dramatic, I guess. You're striped like an animal, because you are an animal, you know? I like it."

"I like it, too. It was my first design, and I guess I just got tired of it, or started second-guessing myself. I'm gonna go ahead and take the stripy one with me to X land."

Terra laughed. "X land. You're funny. No, but I do like that one better."

"Haven't worn it in a while," he said as he picked it up and inspected it. "Better make sure it still fits." He quickly stripped down and into the stripy leather suit, then adjusted a few internal straps to secure the armor plating firmly against him. Once he was satisfied with the fit, he stripped out of it again and into his jeans, then packed it into the small duffle.

x

As they snuggled on the couch and thought about going to bed, Logan asked what Terra thought of David now that she'd spent an evening with him.

"Definitely an interesting character," she replied thoughtfully. "And clearly one of the goodguys, despite the occasional bank robbery."

Logan laughed gently. "You're just not gonna give that a rest, are you?"

"I'm just shocked that he would do that so casually, and not feel at all guilty about it."

"He's an alien, dear. His morals are a little … alien, too. Besides, like he said, he's not a cop or a superhero, he's not here to uphold the law, he's just-"

"Just because it's not his job to uphold the law, that doesn't mean he's free to _break_ the law, B.B. You understand that, don't you?"

Logan paused to consider before he responded. "David's not a citizen of this planet. Like he said, he's just passing through."

"And like I kept asking him, do you think that makes it OK?"

Again, Logan paused to consider his words. "He thinks it does."

Terra turned and looked Logan in the eye seriously. "Do you?"

Logan returned her stare for several seconds, then leaned away from her, relaxing back into the couch. "It's like he said about the 9-ball game. He fights honorably against honorable opponents …"

"And feels he's free to cheat if he doesn't see his opponent as 'honorable'. Are you OK with that, B.B.? Because the X-Men believe there are lines you don't cross. I thought all superheroes felt the same way."

"He's not a superhero. But yes, I feel sure David has lines like that. He'd never hurt someone who wasn't trying to hurt someone else. He wouldn't steal something from someone who needed it. He-"

"And if, in David's opinion, they didn't really need it? He decided the bank didn't need that money, so he stole it." Logan started to reply, but Terra continued. "Do you realize what a slippery slope he's on? If this rule and that rule don't apply to me because I'm special, what about the other rules? Where does it stop? This is how supervillains think, B.B. Trust me, I know."

Logan took Terra's hand and smiled. "The Professor's really done a good job with you, hasn't he? He took a girl with no clear sense of right or wrong and turned you into a squeaky clean, straight arrow …"

Terra looked annoyed. "Because I know not to rob banks?! Is that what you're saying?"

Logan just gave her a warm smile and patted her hand, and she relaxed again. "You said there are lines you don't cross," he started. "I feel confident David has such lines, they're just not quite where yours are."

"So you said," she muttered, sinking back into the couch again.

"He's one of the goodguys, Terra. I can tell," Logan said seriously.

Terra sighed heavily and rested her head on Logan's shoulder. "Yeah, I see it, too," she said. "He's just not _as good_ a goodguy as I'm used to."

"He's a goodguy, but not a superhero. Let the little shit pass."

Terra looked up at him sharply. "Is robbing a bank 'little shit'?"

"The way he did it … yeah, I'm willing to let it go."

"Hmm," was all Terra said. There was a long silence, then finally she asked, "Does he seem a little full of himself?"

"I think he was showing off for us quite a bit. He even said so, about the fight. I'll bet he doesn't use his powers nearly this much, or talk about himself or his past nearly this much, all the time. We're all still getting to know each other, and there's a lot about him to know. He's … had a full life. Six hundred years worth. But, yes, the showing off for us bit carried into his attitude a little. He was bragging. Wants us to think he's cool, I guess."

"We're the ones that should be trying to make sure he thinks we're cool, and wants to keep helping us." She turned and looked at Logan seriously. "We need him if we're going to keep seeing each other."

"I know," he said simply. "I don't have a good answer to that one, but I have a feeling David does. He seems to be good at that."

"In two years I can just ask him to take me for one final trip, and drop me off here with you, but until then …"

"I can't go two years without seeing you, Terra. No way."

"Could we offer to do something for him in exchange for his taxi services? How could we possibly pay the man?"

"I imagine he'll think of something."

"Hmm," Terra replied, and they sat together in silence for a while. Finally, she continued, "That little cat-faced guy was cool. What was his name?"

"Rani," Logan replied. "Rani and Milia. They were cute together."

"And that was David," Terra muttered in disbelief. "I mean, that _was_ David, and his girlfriend, for like twenty years. How weird is that?"

Logan just nodded. "Anyway, that's enough about our buddy Dave for one night. Let's go to bed." He smiled and tugged at her shirt playfully. "I want to get in some quality naked time before we go to sleep."

"Ooh, yes, me too," Terra agreed as she stood up, taking Logan by the hand. She led him into the bedroom and slowly closed the door.

x

The next morning, Logan awoke slowly to find Terra cuddled up to him, kissing him gently. "Wakey, wakey, sleepyhead," she said softly.

Logan grinned at her. "This is so much better than bouncing on the bed, Terra. Remember that."

They showered together, which took a while, then dressed and sat down to a light breakfast, waiting for David. He knocked on the door at 9:00 sharp.

"Are time travelers always this punctual?" Terra asked as she greeted him.

"Haven't actually met that many of them," David replied as he stepped in. He glanced at his watch and said, "Well, let's not dilly-dally. I want to catch the Professor before he starts a lesson."

"Do we need to leave from the middle of campus, at your anchor?" Logan asked.

"Nope. Anchors are for arrival only, not departure. Your living room is fine."

"All right, then," Logan said as he picked up his bags and Terra grabbed hers. "Let's do it."

They set the bags in the middle of the floor and stood in a circle around them. David produced his black pen, which enlarged into a staff, and the head began to glow with a bright green light. They all held hands, Logan putting a hand on David's forearm so he could hold the cane. The light exploded into an energetic green sphere around them. White sparks danced across the surface of the sphere, and a low hum filled the air. For several seconds, David stared blankly, his eyes darting back and forth as though reading.

"Accessing the internet again?" Logan asked, slightly puzzled.

David shook his head and replied without looking at him. "Fine-tuning the trajectory of the six-dimensional wormhole I'm about to open. This takes a second."

"You're going to have to explain this 'six-dimensional' thing to me someday," Logan said.

David still didn't look at him. "You ever studied quantum mechanics?"

"No," Logan said simply.

"Then that could take a while." He seemed to snap out of a little trance, and finally looked over to Logan, then to Terra. "Now, if you remember," he started, "this next part can be a bit jarring."

"I remember," Logan said.

"David, 'jarring' is not the word for it," Terra added.

David just smiled. "Ready? Here we go, three, two, one …" The sphere collapsed and the travelers were gone.


	10. TEN: Monday: The Institute

TEN

(Monday - The Institute)

They spent an eternity floating in a timeless, formless, icy void, then reality violently slapped them in the face. Logan and Terra both leaned heavily on David, out of breath, dizzy, shaky, and freezing cold.

"Christ, David, that never gets any easier," Terra muttered.

"Yeah, I know," David replied as the energy sphere collapsed. "Took me a while to get used to it, too."

The unpleasant effects of the teleport passed quickly, and they slowly took in their new surroundings. They stood in the massive front lawn of an even more massive ivy-covered mansion. Teenagers with books and backpacks were hurriedly filing inside for their morning classes.

"Ah, home," Terra sighed, shaking off the last of the chills.

"Yeah, I remember this place," Logan remarked, then pointed to a nearby tree. "That's where the cute little ghost girl was sitting seven years ago."

"Ghost girl?" Terra asked. "You mean Kitty?"

"Yeah, that was her name. You two are still friends, huh?"

"I know I told you this, B.B.," she said, a little surprised. "Kitty's been my best friend for years, ever since I got here."

"Anyway, reset your watches, guys," David said, adjusting his own. "It's now 8:45 AM. I decided to break my own rule on synchronous timing to catch the Professor before class. Terra, this is your home turf. You want to show us around? I think first we should tell the Professor we're here."

"Easy enough," Terra replied, then put her fingers to her temple and closed her eyes, concentrating. "Professor, we're here," she muttered softly. "No, B.B. and David are with me." She lowered her hand and opened her eyes, looking to her companions. "He wants us to come to his office."

"Lead the way," David replied, gesturing toward the front door.

x

Anyway, blah …

x

They arrived at the X Institute, and stayed there a week or so. Logan was forced to accept the name Beast Boy or B.B. for the duration of the trip because that's how Terra always introduced him. He tried to explain that he's a grown man and it's just Beast now, and that he actually prefers Logan, but it was no use. There's already a Beast and a Logan, so Beast Boy stuck.

This is a school full of superheroes, and how do superheroes get to know each other? By fighting. Beast Boy was escorted to the Danger Room, where he did battle with The Beast, Colossus, Wolverine, Iceman, and Nightcrawler, among others. He even went a few rounds with Shadowcat, who's tougher than she looks.

After proving to the X-Men that he can give as good as he gets, Beast Boy was accepted as a peer. He and Cyclops spent a few hours bonding over their love of motorcycles, and the two Logans discussed the non-lethal uses of big nasty claws.

After about a week of fun with the X-Men, Beast Boy really couldn't stay any longer. 'Logan' had a life he needed to get back to. He and Terra spent one last night together, and in the morning, after a long goodbye, David and Logan left for the other dimension.

A few days later, David returned with a gift for Terra. It looked like a laptop computer, and he said it was equipped with inter-dimensional email. He showed her how to use the camera to record an audio-video message, and when she hit 'send' a magical nano-wormhole opened inside the machine for only a nano-second, just long enough to pulse a radio message through. A moment later she got a message from Logan, sitting in his apartment. David explained that the messages can be any length, but that it can only transmit a couple of times a day, so she needs to make each message count.

Terra and Logan corresponded like this daily for months. They wanted to be together, but she was not ready to leave the X-Men, and he could not forego his life in San Francisco. Logan had a plan, however. In another two years, when they had both finished their educations, he wanted to start Titans West with a few friends of his, Flamebird, Power Girl, and Impulse. He asked Terra to leave the X-Men and join him as a Titan … but only, he joked, if she'd stop calling him 'Beast Boy.'

After a few months of video correspondence, they contacted David again, to ask a favor, maybe make a deal. David said they both "owe him a favor" to be identified later, and began giving them vacations together. Every three months he would take one to the other's world for a week or so. They also spent a few of those vacations away. Twice, David took them to visit his home world, Valador, where Logan learned many new alien animal forms, and once they spent a week in Renaissance London.

After two years, Logan graduated and Terra finished her degree at the Institute. She moved to his world, they both moved to L.A., and together with some of The Beast's friends, formed Titans West. They lived happily ever after.

Titans West is Beast, Terra, Flamebird, Impulse, Power Girl, and occasionally Black Wolf, who decided to stick around for a while. In the spirit of 'living like a local,' David decided to become a superhero, adopting a costume and everything. Black Wolf is now a part time member of Titans West. He continues his romantic pursuit of Raven from across the continent, as he can teleport it easily. Also, there is definite chemistry between Black Wolf and Flamebird. Logan and Terra are in utter bliss living and working together. They are so in love it makes the others sick.

As Black Wolf, David has been using up all his magical energy much faster than before, and is forced to teleport home periodically to recharge his 'mana batteries.' He tries not to leave more than every month or so, and he stays gone for days at a time, sometimes longer, a few times up to a month. He is thus a part time Titan, as the other five go on without him much of the time. Terra carries one of his signal beacons, so he can respond instantly if the there is an emergency and the team needs him while he's away.

Beast and Black Wolf have gotten into several arguments about the ethics of being a superhero. David believes in fighting to win, and Logan believes there are rules of engagement to be followed, namely, don't kill anybody. David can't count how many badguys he's killed in his career, and feels restrained by the code of conduct required to be a superhero, including use of force against a target and treatment of prisoners. Beast has threatened more than once that if Black Wolf doesn't behave he's off the team, and Black Wolf has threatened more than once to quit. So far, they have calmed down and made up after each argument, but everyone, especially Terra, is concerned that David won't be around much longer. His recharging trips are becoming longer and more frequent, as he spends less of his time working as a superhero.

Terra has tried to reach out to David a couple of times. She fears he is headed down the path of the supervillain. She and Logan are both trying to convince him that he's not _as good_ a goodguy as he could be, and he needs to work on his behavior.

The End?

I think that brings us up to date on the soap opera, as it's unfolding in my head. (7/9/07)


End file.
